Israel
Lecturers and Students Return to the Streets in Protest
Israel's system of higher education appears to be in crisis as for the second time this year students and faculty have gone on strike in protest over higher-education funding (tuition and salaries) and controversial government reform programs. The protests stem from government policy over the last six years that has seen funding for higher education slashed by 20 percent despite rapid increases in enrollments.
According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), government spending on higher education in relation to the number of students, GDP, and population growth has fallen from being one of the highest among developed nations to the second lowest between 1998 and 2007, behind only Greece. To make matters worse, tuition is sixth highest among the same 23 OECD nations. Needless to say, standards have suffered with overcrowded classes, deteriorating facilities and less individualized student attention.
From 1999 to 2001, the Labor government of Ehud Barak appointed a commission to look at college tuition. That commission recommended cutting fees in half. The government agreed in 2000 to cut tuition by 25 percent, planning to make up for that lost revenue by returning government support to earlier levels.
But the second intifada broke out in September 2000, freezing all new spending. Colleges and universities were thus hit by a double blow: shrinking tuition revenue and less government support. The funding situation has largely stayed in limbo since then. In 2006, a government-appointed committee was formed to make recommendations aimed at resolving the current situation. A report last July by that committee (Shochat) recommended raising tuition by 74 percent, from US$2,125 to $3,700; introducing a student-loan system; and restoring government support cut by Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration prior to that of Mr. Barak’s.
The Shochat report was the spark for this year’s unrest, and has been on hold ever since, while the start of the academic year has been delayed for a month by a continuing strike by senior faculty members. University officials are warning that the entire year might be lost, especially with the government currently focused on peace talks.
- The Chronicle of Higher Education
November 30, 2007
Qatar
Northwestern Officially Announces Opening of Journalism School in Qatar
Northwestern University announced in November that it would open a branch campus for journalism and communication studies in Qatar. Starting in the fall of 2008, the School of Communication and the Medill School of Journalism will offer programs in journalism, media and integrated marketing communication, and media industries and technologies. The programs will culminate in the first degrees to be conferred by Northwestern away from its main campus, in Evanston, Ill. Administrators hope to enroll about 40 students in the first year. The program will offer courses in journalism ethics, law, and professional practices in addition to
standard writing and editing classes, and students will spend 25 percent of their time in the United States and in foreign newsrooms. The School of Communication’s program joins five other U.S. institutions that operate programs and campuses at the multi-campus Education City: Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, Georgetown, Texas A&M, and Virginia Commonwealth (see WENR May Feature).
- Northwestern news release
November 7, 2007
Saudi Arabia
160 Vocational Training Centers to Spearhead 'Saudization' Goals
Saudi authorities have set targets of creating 3.6 million jobs within 10 years and becoming less reliant on oil revenues. Part of this diversification will require the development of a local workforce with job-ready skills to reduce an over-reliance on overseas labor. It is hoped that this ‘Saudization’ of the workforce will occur, in part, at 160 new training centers to be created by 2017. To meet this ambitious target, job creation must double each year, with the manufacturing sector a particular target. The first institute in this initiative has already been created, the Higher Institute for Plastics Fabrication, and a second, the Rubber Technology Institute, is under construction.
- AMEInfo
November 25, 2007
United Arab Emirates
Canadian University Set to Open Campus in Abu Dhabi
A Canadian university is getting ready to participate in a billion dollar university to be located in Abu Dhabi, the capital of United Arab Emirates. When completed the campus will be able to accommodate 30,000 learners, and the University of Waterloo (UW) will be just one of a number of universities with a physical presence there. Waterloo has been planning on joining the project for the past two years with colleges of engineering, information and technology, and financial management. The university is currently awaiting final approval from the United Arab Emirates government.
After two years at the United Arab Emirates campus, students will be required to complete their degrees at the UW campus in Canada. A similar arrangement exists between UW and Nanjing University in China. The difference being the campus in Abu Dhabi, which the Ontario government isn’t providing funding for, will be an actual UW campus. Various UW faculty will spend four to eight months at a time teaching in the United Arab Emirates. UW estimates it will have approximately 800 students enrolled at the Abu Dhabi campus with 200 graduating each year. The university is tentatively named the Centre of Excellence for Applied Research and Training (CERT) University. CERT is a consortium of technology companies that serves as the commercial arm of
the Higher Colleges of Technology, and is “the largest private education provider in the Middle East,” according to its website. CERT is sharing the cost of construction and will provide much of the infrastructure in exchange for a portion of the university’s revenues.
- Macleans
November 5, 2007
Canadian University of Dubai Signs Agreement with French University
The Canadian University of Dubai (CUD) has signed a collaboration agreement with France’s Lyon II University aimed at promoting academic mobility through exchange programs and at promoting the development of industry-specific training, specifically in finance and entrepreneurship. CUD has ties with a number of European and North American universities, and was originally established as a collaboration between Centennial College of Toronto, Canada, and Emirates Investment.
- Zawya
November 4, 2007
London Business School Begins Dubai Classes
The Dubai campus of the London Business School was officially inaugurated in late November after offering its first Executive MBA classes beginning in September, with an initial enrollment of 78 students from 30 different countries. Six more programs have been announced, and are largely aimed at top companies and executives. The school is based at the Dubai Financial Center.
- Dubai Times
November 28, 2007
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