In all higher institutions in the UAE, a new rating system will be introduced in the near future.
All universities in the UAE will introduce a new rating system as part of a new strategy for higher education. The rating system will determine the standards of higher education institutions. The system will in essence be similar to the one used by schools in Dubai, except that the university rating system will be implemented in numbers. The assessment system will be applied to all universities in the country, including research institutes.
The new initiative is part of the UAE's National Higher Education Strategy, which was announced back in September. In total, the strategy is based on four “pillars”: quality (classification system), relevance, innovation and effectiveness.
Thus, the classification system is only one component of the strategy, which is designed to reduce the number of students expelled annually.
According to Dr. Ahmad Belhul Al Falasi, Minister of Higher Education and Continuing Education: Currently, the number of expelled students is 14% of the total number of students.
The Minister noted that all over the world the number of deductions is from 4 to 10%. In the UAE, this indicator is 14%, however, this indicator is less for workers. Thus, in principle, this level cannot be called excessively high, however, it is higher than the world average.
The current task of the ministry is to identify the trend, to understand why this is happening: because it is difficult for students to adapt, or they lack support. The answer to this question can be obtained by predicting the development of the situation, using statistics from previous years.
The classification system will allow universities to get a guideline, a set of requirements for them by the ministry.
Here is what Al Falasi said about this:
"The main and primary task is to assess the quality of educational services. The requirements of the ministry will allow universities to determine what they need to do in order to get a grade of 1, 2, or 3. This will allow universities to realize that their task is not only to act within the framework of the issued license, but also to maintain the level of services provided at the level set by the government. "
