Staff
As artificial intelligence, sustainability mandates and national ambition redraw the profession, universities across the GCC are rethinking curricula, faculty and infrastructure to keep graduates ahead of a discipline that no longer stands still
Dubai, Sept 30, 2026: The forces reshaping engineering education are largely the same across institutions: artificial intelligence, sustainability, digital transformation and a national push towards a knowledge-based economy. What differs is how each university has chosen to respond, and how far the shift has moved beyond the traditional, discipline-bound model of training an engineer.
At Abu Dhabi University (ADU), Dr Hamdi Sheibani, dean of the College of Engineering, traces the change back to national innovation agendas and industry demand for future-ready talent. “Emerging fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, robotics, advanced manufacturing and sustainable engineering have become increasingly embedded across engineering disciplines, requiring universities to continuously evolve their curricula and learning environments,” he says. For Sheibani, the response has to be structural rather than cosmetic: “As technology continues to evolve, engineering education must remain agile, preparing graduates to lead innovation across critical sectors around the world.”
Dr Fadi Aloul, dean of engineering at the American University of Sharjah (AUS) and chair of the UAE Engineering Deans Council, frames the same shift in terms of what today’s engineer needs to know. “Today’s engineers need strong technical foundations, but they must also understand AI, data analytics, sustainability, entrepreneurship and emerging technologies,” says Aloul. Industry, he adds, is placing greater weight on adaptability and the ability to work across disciplines — a demand that has pushed AUS towards internships and industry-sponsored projects as core parts of the student journey, rather than optional extras.
Dr Harpreet Seth, interim head of the School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society at Heriot-Watt University Dubai, says technical expertise, on its own, is no longer treated as sufficient. “There is also widespread recognition that engineering graduates require strong communication, leadership and problem-solving skills, alongside technical expertise, to thrive in today’s global economy,” says Seth. That view is consistent with a broader pattern across institutions: emerging technical fields are expanding what engineering covers, while soft skills are expanding what it takes to practise it.
The same drivers are visible elsewhere too. At BITS Pilani Dubai Campus, Prof Souri Banerjee, the campus director, points to a comparable alignment between curricula and the UAE’s innovation-led economy. “Universities have increasingly aligned their curricula with emerging technologies and industry requirements, while strengthening research, entrepreneurship, experiential learning and partnerships with leading organisations,” he says. The institution has launched a wave of new programmes over the past five years, including electronics and computer engineering, robotics and industrial automation, and a sustainability-focused chemical engineering specialisation, backed by its long-running Practice School industry-immersion model.
