The Mohamed bin Zayed University for Humanities in Abu Dhabi launched the world's first degree in tolerance and coexistence.
Students who pursue the bachelor's degree course will be taught and equipped with academic knowledge and practical skills that will help them to spread a culture of tolerance and coexistence.
It includes modules that promote these values, the role of media in encouraging a cohesive society, comparative religion and Islam.
"Education plays a clear role in fostering the values that create harmony between societies,” said Dr Khaled Salem Al Dhaheri, the chancellor of the university.
“MBZUH’s bachelor's degree is the first higher-education programme in the world that develops students’ understanding and respect for different cultures, civilisations and religions, so they can act as ambassadors and build bridges of communication between cultures and civilisations."
The three-year programme will enrol its first students in September.
Graduates will be offered employment opportunities and the course will provide additional skills for careers in social work, events, communications, counselling, religious affairs co-ordination, the police force and some government and non-government organisation roles.
The degree was adopted at the first meeting of the MBZUH board of trustees in January.
It aims to establish Abu Dhabi as the capital of tolerance, peaceful coexistence and engagement in civilised dialogue.
The UN declared February 4 as International Day of Human Fraternity in recognition of the historic meeting between Pope Francis and Ahmed El Tayeb, Grand Imam of Al Azhar, in Abu Dhabi on this date in 2019.
During the meeting, the two religious leaders signed the Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together.
MBZUH was launched in November 2020 and offers programmes in social studies, humanities and philosophy for bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees.
The university aims to open international campuses.
Top universities in the UAE – in pictures
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United Arab Emirates University in Al Ain has a strong standing in research and offers one of the country's main medicine degrees. Randi Sokoloff / The National -
Khalifa University has rapidly climbed the global rankings in recent years but was knocked off the UAE top spot this year by UAEU. It boasts a nuclear engineering school staffed by top nuclear scientists, many of them from South Korea. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
With its its striking architecture, American University of Sharjah offers about two dozen major degrees including humanities, engineering and business to about 5,000 students. It often scores strongly in global rankings and is particularly popular with Arab expat students. Alamy Photo -
University of Sharjah was established in 1997 and is one of the country's largest, with about 14,000 students enroled. It also has campuses in the town of Dhaid and in Kalba, in Sharjah's east coast enclave. Wikicommons
