Education

Increased government expenditure on education giving Gulf students unprecedented access to Virtual Learning Environments

Dubai, UAE, 15 May 2013: Digital education programmes being introduced to schools in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar will have a positive long-term effect on students, says the Regional President of Pearson, the world’s leading education company.

GCC Governments’ expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP has risen dramatically over the past decade. This year, the Saudi Arabia government is expected to commit a record US$54 billion to education, which makes it one of the top ranking countries in the world in terms of education spending. The UAE and Qatar are also channelling unprecedented amounts of funding into developing world-class education systems, with the UAE spending nearly a fifth of its entire budget on schools, and Qatar more than doubling its education spending over the past five years to reach more than $US6 billion this year.

MUSCAT To explore locally available building materials and technologies a joint Omani-German workshop entitled “Local Resources – New Materials” will be held at the German University of Technology in Oman (GUtech) next week. The workshop will be held in cooperation with Prof. Heike Klussmann, Head of the Department of Fine Arts of the University Kassel (Germany) and Asst. Prof. Daniela Ottmann of the Department of Architecture and Urban Planning at GUtech and will be the beginning of a three year joint German-Omani research project, funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). “The main mission of the research is to explore and experiment with locally available traditional materials and technologies in order to invent 'new materials' to meet the needs of a sustainable built environment of the present and future,” said Daniela Ottmann.



As a start-off session of the joint research project Prof. Heike Klussmann, at the University of Kassel and her team of the practice-based working-concept platform 'BAU KUNST ERFINDEN' (Building/ Art/ Inventing) will be conducting two introduction workshops for GUtech students. Instructors and students will work together to find solutions on how to deal with art and technology. One workshop will be conducted by former BMW concept car designer Klaudia Kruse who will produce not only prints on fabric based on the students own designs but also construct the screens for the prints themselves. The other workshop will be based on the concepts “the do it yourself” and “making is knowing”. Students will build their own solar cell, based on Professor Michael Graetzel's invention of a dye-sensitized solar cell imitating the photosynthesis process.

Department of Sustainable Tourism and Regional Development  
German University of Technology in Oman - Rm 101 first floor
Semester 4 course ‘Entrepreneurship and Innovation’
13.15                   Opening reception  
13.15 – 14.00    Ubhar; a Dream Come true
Ghada Al Yusef  

14.00 – 15.00    Zuwiena Al Rashdi
Handicrafts
Qais al Toubi

15.00 – 15.30     Ms. Halima Al Riyami
Sharakah

15.30 – 17.30   Injaz  Oman Innovation Camp  
Mr. Shabib Al Ma’amary

MUSCAT A group of GUtech MSc students of the department of Petroleum Geoscience will participate in a field excursion to the Southern coastal region of Devon and Dorset in the UK end of June.



The group of GUtech MSc students and Professor Dr. Wiekert Visser, Head of the Department of Petroleum Geosciences, will study the geology of the coast of Devon and Dorset, which is famous among petroleum geoscientists. “The area hosts the largest oil field onshore Europe, proving the petroleum prospectivity of the area. Based on field observations along the coast and sketches of offshore seismic data, students will learn how to predict the prospectivity of the offshore area, an activity which is called "Play evaluation" in oil-men's speak. The Dorset/Devon area offers an excellent exposures of the key elements that make an area prospective for oil and gas: source rocks, reservoir rocks, seals and structure,” said Professor Wiekert. Oil companies and universities alike from all over Europe and beyond send staff and students to study the rocks in the field, and gain understanding on "how geology works" to create oil and gas fields.

Muscat: The Colleges of Technology will offer programmes based on changing local market needs as lead sponsor for GHEDEX 2013. Organised by OITE Trade Fairs, the Global Higher Education Exhibition GHEDEX 2013 will take place from 23-25 April 2013 at the Oman International Exhibition Centre under the patronage of Ministry of Higher Education .

The Higher College of Technology is one of seven colleges under the Ministry of Manpower in the Sultanate, with six regional Colleges of Technology located in Musanna, Nizwa, Ibra, Salalah, Shinas and Ibri and one Higher College of Technology in Muscat. A total number of approximately 33000 students are enrolled at present in the Colleges of Technology.

Muscat: Caledonian College of Engineering (CCE) invites students to broaden their horizons and imbibe career oriented courses, skills and training that will open up career opportunities for them, as Gold Sponsor at GHEDEX 2013. Held under the patronage of the Ministry of Higher Education and organised by OITE Trade Fairs, the Global Higher Education Exhibition-GHEDEX will take place from 23rd -25th April, 2013 at the Oman International Exhibition Centre.

"We are pleased to support GHEDEX 2013 as Gold Sponsor. The industry today demands multi-skilled engineers equipped with broad engineering education, specialist knowledge and excellent communication skills. Our programmes are designed to provide a combination of the same, where the student may choose whether he wants to study full-time, part-time or special part-time as per his convenience. We also strive to help students discover which career path they should follow, not necessarily the one that they think they may be good at" says Dr. Ahmed Al-Bulushi, Acting Dean, CCE

Muscat: As Lead Sponsor, Mazoon College will help students discover where their potential lies through outstanding programs in management, humanities, social sciences and technology, which they will showcase at Oman's leading Global Higher Education Exhibition-GHEDEX 2013 from 23rd-25th April, 2013 at the Oman International Exhibition Centre.  

"We now offer four-year Bachelor of Science degrees in Accounting, Business Administration, Computer Science, Economics, Information Science & Technology, Management Information Systems, Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in English. Additionally the college also offers a General Foundation program and variety of Training and Short Programs that strive to develop the skills of the students to succeed in their chosen fields of study” says Mr. Salah Al-Khaldi, Marketing Manager, Mazoon College.

Muscat: EducationUSA is all set to support international higher education as a supporter for GHEDEX 2013-the Sultanate's Global Higher Education Exhibition taking place from 23^rd-25^th April, 2013 at the Oman International Exhibition Centre. Organised by OITE Trade Fairs, the event will take place under the patronage of the Ministry of Higher Education.

“EducationUSA is happy to be a part of the GHEDEX 2013 event. We are excited to talk with students interested in pursuing their studies in the USA, and helping them connect with universities participating in this event” says EducationUSA Oman Adviser Laila Kabbash.

EducationUSA is a network of hundreds of advising centers in 170 countries, where millions of international students each year find accurate, comprehensive, and current information about how to apply to accredited U.S. colleges and universities. The EducationUSA in Oman is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State via the U.S. Embassy in Muscat, and housed at AMIDEAST. EducationUSA advisers and staff work with U.S. higher education professionals to promote international student enrollment. EducationUSA also helps promote study abroad opportunities for U.S. citizens. U.S. and international students alike can prepare for leadership roles in today's world through an international education.