22 February 2007
Dubai has suddenly become exec-ed's favourite port in the Middle East. Only six weeks after London Business School announced it was to start exec-ed programs there, fellow London-based school, Cass, part of City University, has launched an EMBA program based there aswell - and it too is being backed by the DIFC.The first intake of students is planned for September 2007.
Launched in association with Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the EMBA will be the world’s first MBA programme offering specialist streams in Islamic Finance and Energy. The DIFC is an onshore hub for global finance. It bridges the time gap between the financial centers of Hong Kong and London and services a region with the largest untapped emerging market for financial services.
The new programme will be taught over 24 months and will involve the same content as Cass’s London-based Executive MBA, one of the highest ranked EMBAs in the world by the Financial Times. The first intake of students is planned for September 2007.
His Excellency Dr. Omar bin Sulaiman, Governor, DIFC, said: “The boom witnessed in the region has opened the doors to hundreds of thousands of jobs, and there is a dearth of qualified professionals in the financial sector. As reforms accelerate further within the Islamic finance sector, there will be a requirement for talents at a level and scale never seen before. The EMBA from Cass Business School is expected to fill this gap since executives will now have the option to study and work at the same time.”
“I firmly believe that businesses need to partner with academic institutions to produce an educated workforce that is attuned to the needs of the market. This programme being launched by Cass Business School in association with DIFC will enable region-based executives to acquire world class education at their doorsteps,” he added.
Lord Currie, Dean of Cass Business School said: “Our location in the City means that we are a leading provider of business education and research which is of relevance to the business community and we are also the only business school to have premises in Canary Wharf, London’s second financial centre. It is therefore a natural progression that we offer an MBA in a burgeoning financial centre in the Middle East, in a similar way to the programme we deliver in Shanghai, China’s leading financial centre. We look forward to serving the intellectual needs of the region and its highly skilled workers.”
The Lord Mayor of the City of London, Alderman John Stuttard commented: “London’s financial and business district, the City, delivers world class education in financial and business services, and I am delighted that this new qualification will provide an important link between London and one of the world’s newest, and rapidly developing, international centres for banking, finance, and other financial services.”
Classes will be delivered by Cass academics who will visit Dubai to deliver classes over a long weekend once a month. The School’s online learning platform, CassLearn, which has been instrumental in the success of the delivery of the China Executive MBA in Shanghai, will be used for online tutorials, group discussion and research.
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