UAE sees rise in tech jobs as Covid pandemic recovery gathers pace

Hundreds of new roles being created with technology sector leading the way

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  'The National' looks at 10 high-paying careers in the UAE that will remain in-demand for many years. Artificial intelligence engineers can earn an average salary of Dh32,000. AI is being used widely across the Emirates, including for traffic control systems, government departments, air traffic control, healthcare and education sectors. The UAE also has an AI strategy and also recently launched the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence, which will help produce AI engineers. AFP

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  Experienced data scientists can earn a median salary of Dh32,000. The UAE Golden Visa, a 10-year residency visa for skilled professionals, is available to these professionals. They also fall into the category of Emirati citizenship, but they would have to be nominated by a Royal Court. Bloomberg

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  The average salary of management consultants is Dh35,000. These professionals apply the data available to improve business performance. With entrepreneurship encouraged heavily in the UAE, management consultants will be in high-demand. Getty Images

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  Investment bankers can earn Dh45,000. With the Covid-19 pandemic disrupting the global market, companies and individuals are increasingly looking at hiring these services to learn how and where to invest their money. Getty Images

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  A principal scientist earns an average salary of Dh38,000. Scientists also qualify for the UAE’s Golden Visa scheme and really qualified ones can be nominated by the Royal Court for Emirati citizenship. These scientists could be working in different areas, including healthcare, space research or part of a space mission, or other research areas. Getty Images

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  Doctors earn an average salary of Dh33,000. Medical professionals are always going to be in-demand, but the Covid-19 pandemic has reminded governments how important it is to have an effective healthcare system. With the UAE having a focus on building its healthcare sector further, more vacancies will open up. Getty Images

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  The median salary of an experienced cybersecurity engineer is Dh30,000. Cyber-attacks are growing each year and companies are looking for qualified engineers who can protect their online information. Bloomberg

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  An experienced finance officer can earn between Dh33,000 to Dh35,000. The profession requires overseeing the spending of individuals or companies and advising them accordingly. Getty Images

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  Software engineers can earn Dh35,000, but those at a senior level can earn more than Dh50,000. These professionals develop computer software for machines. Bloomberg

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  Senior human resource officers earn an average salary of Dh30,000. They hire and look after employees. It was believed earlier that AI would replace their jobs, but it has been assisting with their roles, rather than causing unemployment. Getty images

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Hundreds of jobs are opening up across the UAE as the labour market continues its resurgence from a pandemic downturn, recruiters have said.

Roles in the technology, e-commerce and healthcare sectors are particularly in demand.

Career opportunities in the industrial sector are also on the rise thanks to the easing of visa and travel restrictions.

Dr Ahmad Khamis, chief executive of Bloovo – an artificial intelligence-led recruitment company – said “things are returning to normal in the UAE”.

“From what we've seen over the past couple of months, the activity has picked up actually drastically post-Covid-19 and things are returning back to normal,” he said.

'Data is new oil' as technology sector grows

“We can see from the applicant tracking system that we have with a couple of clients that hundreds of new jobs have been added to the labour market.

“These jobs are mainly coming from the technology sector. In addition, demand in the healthcare sector has skyrocketed. E-commerce is also on the rise again because investments have been made in this sector. Accordingly, hundreds of new jobs are being created in the UAE.”

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Dr Khamis said “data is the new oil” and that the technology sector would continue to grow, opening up employment opportunities for numerous people in the field.

Salaries for entry-level positions in data science and artificial intelligence engineering start at Dh15,000 ($4,083) and can go up to Dh35,000 for midlevel careers.

“Going forward there will be a new class of jobs that will start appearing on the surface, such as data science, machine learning, big data and cloud solution services, because this is the new trend today with the adoption of artificial intelligence as a theme for modern economies,” Dr Khamis said.

Recruiters look to remote workers

David Mackenzie, group managing director at recruiters Mackenzie Jones, said many roles that were meant to be filled in 2020 are now being taken on, but new positions were also being made available by employers as part of future planning.

He said there was a heavy demand in the technology sector, particularly FinTech, data science and tech specialists, but there was not enough talent to fill those roles.

“There's been a very swift return to job numbers in terms of roles coming on to the marketplace,” he said.

“At the moment, we're doing work in FinTech and start-ups, health care and we do a lot of work in financial services. So, all of those markets seem to be quite booming now.

“We have a FinTech division and there’s so much going on in that space. The problem is there is a real shortage globally of data scientists and tech specialists.

“What we’re doing is recruiting people as far away as Georgia and Australia that can work remotely.”

UAE sets out plans to attract global talent

The UAE has launched several initiatives to attract global talent to the country.

It was announced this year that the Emirates would provide 100,000 golden visas – a 10-year residency visa – to the best computer-programming talent in the UAE and across the globe.

As part of the initiative, tech giants including Google, Facebook and Amazon would train young people in computer programming.

Data scientists are in a strong position in the job market due to a global shortage of expertise, a UAE recruiter said. Bloomberg

More recently, the UAE launched the Fourth Industrial Revolution Network, which aims to promote the adoption of advanced technologies in the industrial sector.

Mr Mackenzie said the labour market is generally performing well and there are also jobs opening in other sectors.

However, he said that the recruiting process could take up to several months.

“We've recruited in insurance, health care, legal and food. The market generally is very good, but there is a slight caveat to that. Many jobs out there are on LinkedIn are what we term as phishing jobs,” he said.

“There are clients looking for people, but they're not sure what they want. So, they may just look at people and decide not to fill that role in the end anyway. The times to hire are really long – three to four months.

“I think clients procrastinate an awful lot at the moment. They put people through so many different interview processes and they always think that there's another good person out there.

“Clients will often want to see a minimum three to four people before they make a decision these days.”

Top 7 UAE jobs offering best starting salaries:

• Artificial intelligence – entry level, Dh15,000/midlevel, Dh20,000
• Data scientist – entry level, Dh15,000/midlevel, Dh25,000
• User interface design or user interface engineering – entry level, Dh10,000/midlevel, Dh20,000
• Digital marketing – entry level, Dh8,000/midlevel, Dh17,000
• Supply chain analyst – entry level, Dh7,000/midlevel, Dh18,000
• Space scientist/researcher – entry level, Dh10,000/midlevel Dh20,000
• Blockchain specialist – entry level, Dh14,000/midlevel, Dh23,000

(List is compiled using data from Future Tense HR, based in Dubai)

Top freelancing jobs in the UAE - in pictures

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  1. Personal Trainer - in the UAE, personal trainers charge between Dh325 and Dh500 for a one-to-one hour-long session, which works out as Dh30,000 to Dh40,000 a month. Courtesy, Majid Al Futtaim

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  2. European nannies can earn as much as Dh150 per hour, but the pay starts much lower at around Dh25. Getty Images

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  3. Private Tutor - in the UAE, tutors charge by hour, starting at Dh350 and going up to Dh660, depending on the experience of the teacher, and the academic stage of the child. This works out as Dh32,000 to Dh60,000 a month. Getty Images

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  4. Journalist - freelance writers earn Dh100 to Dh125 per hour, or around Dh3,600 per month. Getty

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  5. Interior designer - self-employed designers earn Dh10,000 to Dh50,000 per month. Victor Besa /The National

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  6. Life coach - the hourly rate for a life coach ranges from Dh300 to Dh700 per hour, or Dh12,000 - Dh18,000 a month. Getty Images

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  7. Marketing and PR - freelance junior marketing or PR executives earn Dh6,000 to Dh14,000 per month as a junior, while experienced professionals can demand Dh60,000 to Dh100,00 a month.

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  8. Sports instructor - to host an hour long class as a freelancer, an instructor can expect Dh150 to Dh350, or Dh15,000 to Dh25,000 a month depending on the sport and the size of the class.

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  9. Make-up artist - to create a look usually takes an hour, and make-up artists can charge Dh500 to Dh800 per session. Depending on the number of clients this can work out as a monthly salary of Dh20,000 to Dh50,000. Courtesy, Dubai Bride Show

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  10. Web designer - creating a simple static website takes about a week, and designers earn around Dh15,000 to Dh30,000 a month. Gabby Jones / Bloomberg