Dubai International Academic City (DIAC), informally known as Academic City, is a

university town A college town or university town is a town or city whose character is dominated by a college or university and their associated culture, often characterised by the student population making up 20 percent of the population of the community, bu ...

in the city of

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

along the Dubai-Al Ain Road. The project was launched in May 2006 in liaison with Dubai Knowledge Park. The regulatory authority in the DIAC is the Dubai Development Authority. As a university town, DIAC is a foundation for

schools A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of ...

colleges A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary education, tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding academic degree, degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further educatio ...

and

universities A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

. Consisting of 27 colleges and universities, 3 innovation centers, the DIAC enrolls about 27,500 students. It offers more than 500 academic programs in different fields.

History

DIAC was established in 2007 as a

and a residential free-zone dedicated to higher education by TECOM Group. It was approved by

Government of Dubai The Government of Dubai () is the subnational authority that governs the Emirate of Dubai, one of the seven constituent monarchies which make up the United Arab Emirates. The executive authority and head of the government is the Ruler of Dubai, Sh ...

and was launched as a common campus where schools, colleges and universities from Knowledge Park would move to. Dr. Ayoub Kazim, former associate professor of United Arab Emirates University served as

Managing Director A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of DIAC. In 2016, Mohammad Abdullah, president of Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation became the managing director. With a campus area of more than 129 million square feet, DIAC acts as a foundation for several residential colleges and universities. After its inception, a campus expansion program was taken up, which finished in 2012. In 2006, Institute of Management Technology, Dubai was one of the first universities to set up permanent campus in DIAC. The year of 2017 witnessed 10 year anniversary of Dubai International Academic City. In the same year,

Curtin University Curtin University (previously Curtin University of Technology and Western Australian Institute of Technology) is an Australian public university, public research university based in Bentley, Western Australia, Bentley, Perth, Western Australia. ...

, United Arab Emirates University branch campuses were announced to establish in DIAC.

Present form

DIAC has grown into an educational hub. Consisting of 27 residential colleges and universities and 3 innovation centers, DIAC enrolls more than 27,500 students of over 150 nationalities. Universities and colleges offer more than 500 bachelor,

master Master, master's or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles In education: *Master (college), head of a college *Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline *Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...

and

doctoral A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

programs in various fields of

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

, general sciences,

humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture, including Philosophy, certain fundamental questions asked by humans. During the Renaissance, the term "humanities" referred to the study of classical literature a ...

, management, medical sciences and technology. It was titled as

MENA The Middle East and North Africa (MENA), also referred to as West Asia and North Africa (WANA) or South West Asia and North Africa (SWANA), is a geographic region which comprises the Middle East (also called West Asia) and North Africa together ...

's largest educational hub. Many other institutions are expected to move to DIAC in future. Currently, DIAC comprises reputed and renowned universities from other countries like

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

Murdoch University Murdoch University is a public university in Perth, Western Australia, with campuses also in Singapore and Dubai. It began operations as the state's second university on 25 July 1973, and accepted its first undergraduate students in 1975. Its ...

BITS Pilani The Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani (BITS Pilani) is a private deemed university in Pilani, Rajasthan, India. It focuses primarily on higher education and research in engineering and sciences. BITS Pilani was one of the first ...

, British University. Due to increased student intake, DIAC has taken up student housing projects for providing budget friendly stay for students affiliated to DIAC, As of now 2 of these student housing projects have been completed and are operational. However, some universities provide their own residential facilities and students are allowed to opt either. DIAC has taken steps to promote innovation and provides incubation facilities to interested students at innovation centers.

Institutions

Colleges

* Dubai English Speaking College * Dubai Men's College * Hamdan eTQM University *

Higher Colleges of Technology The Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) () is a public institute of technology with 16 campuses and facilities throughout the United Arab Emirates. Founded in 1988 by Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak al-Nahyan, it is the largest applied higher educa ...

* Imam Malik College * UK College of Business and Computing - Dubai Campus

Research centers

* Dubai Statistics Center * International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA)

Schools

* German School Dubai * Lycée Français International Georges Pompidou * Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Islamic Institute

Universities

* Abu Dhabi University * Al Ghurair University *

American University in the Emirates The American University in the Emirates (AUE) is a private university in Dubai International Academic City in the United Arab Emirates. The university was founded in 2006. Campus AUE is located at the Dubai International Academic City. The Amer ...

* Amity University * Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani – Dubai Campus *

University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

* British University in Dubai
Curtin University Dubai
*

De Montfort University De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) is a public university in the city of Leicester, England. It was established in accordance with the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, Further and Higher Education Act in 1992 as a degree awarding body ...

, Dubai * École Hôtelière Helvétique * Emirates Aviation University * Emirates Institute for Banking and Financial Studies * French Fashion Institute ESMOD Dubai * Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University * Heriot-Watt University Dubai * Institute of Management Technology, Dubai *

Islamic Azad University The Islamic Azad University (IAU; , ''Dāneshgāh-e Āzād-e Eslāmi'') is a Private university, private university system Headquarters, headquartered in Tehran, Iran. It is one of the largest comprehensive systems of university, universities in ...

* Manipal University Dubai * Middlesex University Dubai * National Institute for Vocational Education Dubai * St. Joseph University Dubai * S P Jain School of Global Management Dubai *

Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology SZABIST is a multi-campus private university with campuses in various major cities of Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates. Its main campus is located in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Overview Begun in 1995 under the vision of its founder Pakistan ...

* Strathclyde Business School * University of Dubai *

University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of ...

* University of Wollongong in Dubai * Zayed University

Education campuses

Dubai Knowledge Park provides facilities for corporate training and learning institutions to operate with 100% foreign ownership. There are over 400 companies and institutions operating within it, which include occupational assessment and testing providers, universities, computer training providers, professional centers, executive development providers and HR consultancy companies. It is owned by Dubai Holding's subsidiary TECOM Investments. It is located in Al Sufouh 2 District. In 2007, TECOM Investments launched a separate facility, Dubai International Academic City, where all institutions of higher education from Dubai Knowledge Park will be moved to. Dubai Knowledge Park has previously been known as Knowledge Village.

Institutions expected to move to DIAC

* Dubai Aviation College (currently near Garhood Bridge) * Dubai Police Officers' Academy (currently between

Burj Al Arab The Jumeirah Burj Al Arab (, ), commonly known as Burj Al Arab, is a luxury hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Developed and managed by Jumeirah, it is one of the tallest hotels in the world, although 39% of its total height is made up of ...

and

Sheikh Zayed Road E 11 () is a highway in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The longest road in the Emirates, it stretches from the Al Batha border crossing at the Saudi Arabia–United Arab Emirates border, Saudi Arabia–UAE border in Sila, Abu Dhabi, al-Silah in th ...

) * St Petersburg State University of Engineering and Economics * UAE Academy of Hospitality

Dubai Metro

On November 24, 2023,

Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (; born 15 July 1949) is an Emirati politician and royal who is the current ruler of Dubai, and serves as the Vice President of the United Arab Emirates, vice president and Prime Minister of the United Arab ...

approved the Blue Line project of the

Dubai Metro The Dubai Metro () is a rapid transit system in the city of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The metro system consists of a network of two main lines: the Red Line and the Green Line. A third line, the Blue Line, is scheduled to open in 2029. Du ...

and the area will be served by Academic City station.

References

External links

*
Archive.gulfnews.comDubaifaqs.com
* {{Dubai topics *Dubai International Academic City 2006 establishments in the United Arab Emirates Education in Dubai Academic enclaves Free-trade zones of the United Arab Emirates