UAE Universities Urged to Overhaul Courses for AI-Era Jobs Market

Universities across the UAE need to redesign courses and teaching methods to keep pace with artificial intelligence and changing labour market demands, acting Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Dr Abdulrahman Al Awar said at the Zayed Education Foundation’s Partnerships for the Future event in Abu Dhabi.

Al Awar called for closer collaboration between higher education institutions and industry as emerging technologies reshape the skills required by employers. The ministry’s Outcome-Based Evaluation Framework is intended to push institutions towards greater competitiveness and closer alignment with student, economic and societal needs.

Students in the Ruwwad Zayed Scholars programme also called for more emphasis on practical skills. Noor Odeh, a computational data science master’s student at Khalifa University, said higher education should place less weight on measures such as GPA and more on what students can actually do, while Zayed University student Jassem Alkhoori argued that curricula should include greater guidance on using AI tools for research.

The Zayed Education Foundation recently announced the first cohort of 50 Ruwwad Zayed Scholars pursuing master’s degrees at universities in the UAE. The foundation aims to create opportunities for 100,000 students by 2035, with its wider programme focused on connecting academic development with the skills needed in emerging industries.