Teaching Skills: for a Quantum Leap in Higher Education

It is no secret that universities have traditionally focused on providing their students with academic knowledge within their scientific disciplines and other domains. However, in light of the developments that occur every day in the world and the changes that the world has never experienced before, it is becoming imperative for universities to systematically and seriously endow their students with practical integrated skills. These skills will be the means that ensure they achieve success at the professional level after their graduation and guarantee their societies and countries will make the most of these competencies.

This necessary requirement is what I have been calling for in the forums, conferences, and scientific symposiums I attended, the lectures I presented, and the seminars in which I participated. I dealt with this subject thoroughly and in detail in my book, which was recently published under the title “Education for Skills, Education for the Next Fifty Years”. To make it clear, I explain it as follows: There are many reasons for universities to provide their students with practical skills, the first of which is the intensification of competitiveness in the labor market. Given the long queues of graduates that are lengthening day after day, companies and institutions are looking for graduates, who not only have distinguished academic education, but also practical skills and experiences learned even before their first day on the job.

Another reason for universities to undertake the task of teaching their students these skills is the high speed with which technology and its applications are developing these days, which affects work environments and accelerates their pace. As a result, graduates are required to have the ability and competence to quickly adapt and learn new skills.  If we review the various economic and professional fields, we will find that the purely specialized academic knowledge that was once sufficient for the graduate’s success in the labor market has lost its luster and appeal.

In addition, it is worth noting that universities in the Arab world are obviously still concentrating on teaching curricula aimed at graduating employees, which has contributed to creating more job lines over the past decades. Fortunately, Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University realized this fact at an early stage. It responded to this need by promoting the notion of “graduating entrepreneurs, not job seekers”, as it is necessary to provide the graduates with the capabilities, competencies and skills that give them confidence, knowledge and experience to establish businesses and set projects that accommodate job seekers.

Finally, given the gigantic steps taken by the United Arab Emirates, inspired by the enlightened vision of the wise leadership in the various advanced modern industries, we must have an education that rises to this level of achievements and aspirations at the state level. This process will not be fruitful if the educational system that prevailed for decades is perpetuated. In fact, it is necessary to induct fundamental changes that guarantee the graduation of highly-qualified generations to meet the challenges of the new era, and enable the country to continue its relentless progress to occupy its place among the ranks of developed countries.

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