By Joseph George
GCC universities are responding to the rising demand for AI, machine learning, data science and data analytics across multiple disciplines by introducing new programmes, updating curricula and upgrading infrastructure
IT-related courses are gaining traction among students in the GCC, as colleges and universities respond to the evolving demand by introducing new programmes, updating their curricula and upgrading existing campus infrastructure to cater to the changing demand.
Guided by government policies and new regulations, higher education institutions are racing towards developing new industry partnerships to keep pace with the latest trends and technology advancements.
According to the 2024 World Economic Forum (WEF) report, 46% of workers surveyed say their formal qualifications are not relevant to their job.
The report titled ‘Putting Skills First, Opportunities for Building Efficient and Equitable Labour Markets’ notes that businesses need to adopt skills-first approaches – emphasising on a person’s skills and competencies rather than degrees, job histories or job titles – when attracting, hiring, developing, or redeploying talent.
The report, which draws on recent data from the WEF’s Future of Jobs Survey and PwC’s Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey, points out that while currently only 6% of global businesses believe that removing degree requirements would improve talent availability in their organisation, about 22% of global busineses surveyed believe that eliminating degree requirements will increase diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in their workforces.
It also notes that across all industries only 54% of workers surveyed say that their formal qualifications are relevant to their job and even among highly formalised sectors, such as education and training as well as health and healthcare, nearly 40% of workers do not believe that their formal qualifications are relevant to their jobs.
Another recent report by strategy and management consulting firm McKinsey points out two key trends that stood out in 2024 and are continuing to gain ground – Generative AI and electrification and renewables.
The Technology Trends Outlook for 2024 by McKinsey shortlisted 15 key trends, including robotics, and noted that the outlook remained positive and the continued longer-term growth in job postings for the analysed trends was up 8% from 2021 to 2023.
Meanwhile, senior university officials told Education Middle East that they are witnessing a surge in interest for courses featuring AI, machine learning, data science and data analytics components across most disciplines.
