Degrees in engineering and business-related programmes are among the best for graduates looking to secure well-paid jobs, experts have said.
Qualifications in IT and related fields, artificial intelligence, robotics and nanotechnology are also likely to lead to high-paying jobs.
Choosing a place to study is increasingly influenced by average salaries after graduation, and some senior academics in the UAE have identified subject-by-subject salary trends.
“When we look at the graduate employment range of salaries, those with technical backgrounds, like engineering programmes, have a higher salary range than say business programmes or any other programme,” said Dr Kavita Shukla, vice president for student affairs at Amity University Dubai, the local branch of an Indian institution.
People very rarely have difficulty in finding employment as a result of having done a business degree
Dr James Trotter,
Murdoch University Dubai
“In the business programmes, master’s programmes, like MBA, those going into operational roles, like logistics or project management or operations, are slightly lower paid than the ones in sales or marketing.
“The insurance industry is a very big sector here and they do hire a lot of management graduates. That’s where the higher salaries are paid.”
Business is “by far the most popular” subject in UAE universities, said Dr James Trotter, dean of Murdoch University Dubai, the UAE branch of an Australian university.
“People very rarely have difficulty in finding employment as a result of having done a business degree,” Dr Trotter said.
“The UAE is such a vibrant and growing economy and constantly growing population. There’s almost an ever-increasing need for highly skilled employees.”
There is an array of fields that people with business degrees can go into in the UAE, according to Prof Ammar Kaka, provost of Heriot-Watt University Dubai, which is headquartered in Scotland.
“There’s a lot of job opportunities which require those skills from students who have business degrees,” he said. “A large proportion get jobs within the first six months of graduation.”
Increased use of technology
In recent years, there has been an increase in demand for graduates with technical backgrounds, Dr Shukla said.
IT and related fields, aerospace engineering and nanotechnology are popular. All fields, including retail, are seeing the increased use of technology, which creates opportunities for those with the right skills.
“Then we have medical diagnostics, where robots are going to replace a lot of the work that humans are doing. Large warehouses are going to be run by robots, so there’s a renewed emphasis on technology,” Dr Shukla said.
“India is one of the biggest sources of IT professionals across the world. In our India campuses also, technical and Btech (engineering) programmes are most popular, which has been reflected here in the UAE because it is a mega-trend. It is a trend which is in line with industry demand now.
“So if you look at the job generation in the coming years, almost 130 million jobs will become redundant, they will be replaced by another 130m jobs of a different profile, which are more linked to technology and behavioural sciences.”
It is a trend that institutions such as Heriot-Watt University Dubai see themselves as being well placed to capitalise on.
Graduates secure jobs quickly
Dr Kaka said his institution’s focus is on engineering, business, science, computing, design and psychology.
There are “quite specific” subjects including renewable energy, artificial intelligence and robotics, while data analytics and computer programming are other popular courses.
“The programmes we offer in these areas are quite technical,” he said. “We can say students get jobs very, very quickly after they graduate because there’s very, very big demand.”
But where does a growing emphasis on technology and related fields leave students who may be interested in, say, literature?
In recent decades there has been a trend away from arts subjects, Dr Trotter said, something he considers “unfortunate”.
He thinks the pendulum may swing back in favour of these subjects, since they equip graduates with “a breadth of knowledge, adaptability, these soft skills” that are useful in many careers.
For a graduate in, for example, literature, or history and French, the job opportunities are “not so obvious”, according to Prof Kaka. However, if these subjects are what the student is interested in, he would not advise against these choices.
“I strongly believe students need to follow their passion,” he said.
Students with artistic leanings can combine them with skills that are in demand from employers, according to Dr Shukla. She said Amity University Dubai’s bachelor of fine arts in animation offers an example.
“It’s a techno-creative programme,” she said. “It has a lot of artistic bent to it, it is creative in nature, but it is technological in nature, because it’s involved in animation. There is software to be learnt from and a lot of technical aspects to it.”
Reskilling a growing trend
Applicants are well advised, Dr Trotter said, to be “open to a range of possibilities” and not to limit their options to courses that might appear fashionable.
While cybersecurity, for example, has a high profile, and all corporations need experts to protect their networks, there are “less glamorous” fields with “excellent prospects”.
“I strongly encourage our students to think beyond their first jobs,” he said. He added that double majors — such as marketing with communication, and IT with criminology or psychology — are particularly good springboards to successful careers.
In any case, a person’s first degree need not define the whole of their career. Prof Kaka says there are opportunities later on to specialise in a particular area of a person’s current field — known as “upskilling” — or to learn about a new area, termed “reskilling”.
These career choices may involve studying for a master’s degree, and the “vast majority” of students at Heriot-Watt University Dubai enrolling on such advanced degree courses are “working professionals”.
One example involves people with a construction background taking a master’s degree in facilities management, a field that might offer more stable career opportunities if construction slows.
“We see demand for reskilling growing,” Prof Kaka said.
Top global universities in graduate employability - in pictures
The Details
Kabir Singh
Produced by: Cinestaan Studios, T-Series
Directed by: Sandeep Reddy Vanga
Starring: Shahid Kapoor, Kiara Advani, Suresh Oberoi, Soham Majumdar, Arjun Pahwa
Rating: 2.5/5
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Guide to intelligent investing
Investing success often hinges on discipline and perspective. As markets fluctuate, remember these guiding principles:
- Stay invested: Time in the market, not timing the market, is critical to long-term gains.
- Rational thinking: Breathe and avoid emotional decision-making; let logic and planning guide your actions.
- Strategic patience: Understand why you’re investing and allow time for your strategies to unfold.
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20Z%20FOLD%204
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Results
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Raha%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Kuwait%2FSaudi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Tech%20Logistics%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2414%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Soor%20Capital%2C%20eWTP%20Arabia%20Capital%2C%20Aujan%20Enterprises%2C%20Nox%20Management%2C%20Cedar%20Mundi%20Ventures%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20166%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
Japan 30-10 Russia
Tries: Matsushima (3), Labuschange | Golosnitsky
Conversions: Tamura, Matsuda | Kushnarev
Penalties: Tamura (2) | Kushnarev
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
