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Governor General of Canada visits Canadian University Dubai
Her Excellency discusses culture, climate change, and equality during campus visit
March 21st, 2022, Dubai, UAE: Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada, has made an official visit to Canadian University Dubai (CUD) as part of a working trip to the Middle East. Speaking to an audience of faculty, students and members of the Canadian community in the UAE, Her Excellency shared her insights on a range of themes, including Inuit culture, climate change, and gender equality.
Accompanied by her husband, His Excellency Mr. Whit Fraser, the Governor General was received by CUD President and Vice Chancellor, Prof. Karim Chelli. The visit began with a tour of the University’s new, state-of-the-art campus at Dubai City Walk, led by members of the CUD leadership team.
Welcoming Their Excellencies to the University, CUD Chancellor, Mr. Buti Saeed Al Ghandi remarked, “Our ambition at CUD remains to grow and strengthen our international networks, to help us make an ever-increasing contribution to building the regional knowledge economy, and it is with great pride that we do so in the name of both the UAE and Canada.”
The Governor General opened her address with greetings in Inuktitut, going on to share insights into her Inuit upbringing and the importance of acknowledging and understanding its history. Reflecting on her visit to the region, she spoke of the need for international collaboration to build a successful future for the world, concluding, “The UAE strives for new opportunities and innovations, and for that, Canada is the perfect partner.”
There then followed a Q&A session, moderated by Associate Professor, Dr. Louise Lambert, where the audience took the opportunity to ask Her Excellency about current issues, ranging from action on climate change to the preservation of language.
Closing the interactive session was CUD student and Canadian Business Council Dubai intern, Angela Raj, who thanked Their Excellencies for their generous participation, saying, “This cultural meeting of minds we have experienced today is sure to leave a lasting impact on us all, students and faculty alike. Each and every one of us will be able to take something home from Your Excellencies’ empowering and momentous visit.”
During the event, Their Excellencies toured the exhibition, ‘Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit: Art, Architecture, and Traditional Knowledge’, which is staged by McGill University and currently installed at CUD’s HUB Building Incubator Zone.
As part of the visit, students from the University’s Bachelor of Communications in Journalism program were also given the unique opportunity to engage with His Excellency Mr. Fraser, who is a renowned author and storyteller. During the session, His Excellency discussed his extensive journalistic career, during which he reported from all four corners of Canada, and he then went on to answer questions from students about the future challenges of the journalism industry.
The visit to CUD was part of an official trip to the region, which also sees Their Excellencies meet with heads of state and senior leaders in the UAE and other GCC countries.
International Logistics Project | Student Exchange
The Duale Hochschule Baden Württemberg Mannheim (DHBW) in Germany, in partnership with Canadian University Dubai (CUD), collaborate to advance their international student exchange projects. The projects promote and advance integrated academic studies within industrial workplace programs. The International Logistics Project (ILP) is sponsored by the European Union. The students have coordinated and participated in several creative fundraising initiatives to support these international project exchanges.
The ILP initiatives have taken place over 5 phases since 2019. A brief recap:
The first phase of the ILP took place in March 2019 in Dubai, UAE. Participants included 12 students and 2 academics from each university. Watch the documentary produced at the time.
In the second phase, November 2019, a team of 13 CUD students and 2 professors travelled to Germany.
ILP’s third phase took place in Dubai, UAE, 23 February – 1 March 2020 with students and faculty from each university participating.
During phase four, the team from DHBW in Germany joined 12 CUD students in Dubai, together with CUD’s academics, Dr Farooq Haq, Dr Samar Noaman, and Ms. Nora Barson. Activities included visits to the popular event of EXPO 2020, Al Nabooda Motors to study Logistics and Management in practice, and a networking dinner cruise in Dubai Marina.
Amid the most recent phase five, the DHBW team from Germany visited Dubai, UAE. The most recent momentous event was the fundraiser on October 6, 2022: The Gaming Day. The international students arranged a successful gaming event at CUD for all CUD students. The games included FIFA Soccer 2022, CHESS, MARIOKART, Table Tennis and Billiards. In addition, the CUD ILP students instituted a series of fundraising activities to support their trip to Germany – including two movie nights and two food stalls at CUD’s vibrant campus.
On October 12, 2022, 40 students from the University of Biberach, Germany joined the ILP seminar – and this team of professors and students plan to visit CUD for further academic engagements.
Canadian University Dubai at Educational Exhibition in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
The 3rd Middle Eastern Education & Training Exhibition
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Jeddah, 4-6 October 2022
The Canadian University Dubai (CUD) participated at the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s global education event: The 3rd Middle Eastern Education & Training Exhibition, under the patronage of the Ministry of Education. The opening ceremony was celebrated with Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Jalawi, Governor of Jeddah. The momentous event highlighted the importance of education advancement in the progression of global sustainability.
This prominent event provided an informative educational platform with over 120 universities and institutions. CUD’s counsellors engaged with students – to provide valuable guidance, insight, and information about undergraduate and postgraduate programs, as well as prospective career development. CUD shares the same values with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to drive a world-class higher education system and to develop the youth of the future.
The 3rd Middle Eastern Education & Training Exhibition
Furthermore, Canadian University Dubai’s Bachelors and Graduate programs are now accredited by the Ministry of Education, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This gives graduates from CUD the freedom to seek employment and career development within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Canadian University Dubai is ranked #1 in Dubai, as per QS World University Rankings 2023, The Impact Rankings 2022, and is conveniently located in the heart of Dubai at City Walk. Students can choose from 30+ majors across four academic faculties:
Management
Architecture & Interior Design
Communication, Arts & Sciences
Engineering, Applied Science & Technology
Dubai is a cosmopolitan city, which makes it an attractive choice of city for many. The city is also rapidly transforming into a technology-driven, global digital capital. Students from over 90+ different countries embrace the student-centred university and Dubai city life, creating an active student networking community. CUD promotes a Canadian international higher-learning-education, which also opens opportunities for students to begin studying in Dubai, and then to transfer to Canada.
“There’s something beautiful about change and about learning about different cultures. I am from India, transferred to Dubai, and now coming here to Canada. In a couple of years, I’ll say I’m Canadian.” Nisha Krishnankutty (Transfer student from CUD to Ryerson University, located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada).
University to play leading role in Dubai’s creative arts industry
Dubai, UAE, February 8th, 2022: Canadian University Dubai (CUD) has announced it will soon be home to the next Centre for Entertainment Arts (CEA) to meet the region’s growing demand for advanced skills in the digital and creative industries. The University has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with CEA to train students for careers in the exciting worlds of film, TV, and animation.
As Dubai is fast becoming an icon and incubator hub for digital and creative industries in the MENA region, CUD and CEA will work together to facilitate the introduction of new entertainment arts and technology programming initiatives at the University. The MoU will create opportunities for students to pursue specialized studies in areas such as animation, visual effects, game development, augmented reality and virtual reality. The agreement will also create transfer opportunities for CUD students to join CEA partner institutions in Canada.
To meet the growing demand for skills training in these niche disciplines, the programs coming on line are expected to include non-credit courses, applied skill workshops, and micro-credentials, leading to academically accredited courses. In the future, minor or major programs with recognized accreditation by respective educational accreditation authorities will be added.
The MoU was signed during a ceremony held in the presence of His Excellency, Jean-Philippe Linteau, Consul General of Canada in Dubai and the Northern Emirates. The event was hosted on the sidelines of a Canadian trade mission to the UAE. The mission comprised of 20 Canadian companies in the creative industries sector and was led by the Department of Canadian Heritage, whose mandate is to promote Canadian arts and culture and its capabilities in the sector.
Speaking at the ceremony, His Excellency Linteau, said, “The MOU between the Centre for Entertainment Arts and the Canadian University Dubai is a great example of Canada’s support to the roll out of the UAE national strategy for the cultural and creative industries. Canada is a leader in digital and creative industries and its world class higher education institutions are partners of choice for the UAE.”
Signing the MoU on behalf of CUD was President and Vice Chancellor, Professor Karim Chelli, who remarked, “CUD has already established a leading role in specialized education for the creative sector through the Bachelor of Arts in Creative Industries program. We are delighted to enter into this collaboration with CEA, which will enable us to extend the depth and breadth of specialist courses in this field.”
He continued, “CEA has a remarkable catalogue of post-secondary partners in Canada, strong network and links with the digital industry in North America, and a proven track record of student outcomes. We believe that this partnership will allow us to herald a new era in the creative arts industries, not only in the UAE, but across the MENA Region.”
Speaking on behalf of CEA, Co-Founders and Co-CEOs, Peter Walsh and Diwakar Gandhi, said, “We are delighted to embark on this journey with CUD for this ground-breaking initiative in Dubai. The synergy and shared value of student centric approach between CEA and CUD will foster innovation and advancement in the digital creative arts industry in the UAE and across the MENA region.
“Students will have access to world-class CUD campus facilities, instructors and industry mentors at the Dubai City Walk campus, which will enable them to develop skills to set them apart, while building deep networks of like-minded peers and industry professionals. We are extremely proud of our partnership with CUD and look forward to delivering the CEA curriculum to enhance the digital landscape.”
The new partnership adds to CUD’s existing portfolio of Canadian partner institutions, which provide transfer and further study opportunities for students starting their education in the UAE.
CUD to Collaborate with International Expert on Corporate Etiquette and Diplomacy Training
July 13th, 2016: Canadian University Dubai (CUD) has joined together with leading international etiquette expert, Marchioness Mita Luciani Ranier, to develop a unique suite of corporate training programs that will teach protocol and diplomacy in a business context.
A descendent from Italian nobility, Marchioness Mita is head of the Galateo International Etiquette and Protocol School in Rome. Having acquired extensive experience of delivering custom-made programs to a diverse range of clients around the world, Marchioness Mita will now bring her unique expertise to help organizations in the UAE to understand the principles and practices of general and corporate etiquette in a globalized business environment.
The new programs are built upon the Galateo concept – a blueprint for good manners that was published in the 16th century by Monsignore Giovanni della Casa, a Venetian ambassador, renowned for his refinement.
The first of the training sessions will be held on October 17th and 18th 2016, with registration open until September 28th. Each session will be dedicated to a specific topic, which will be taught in a combination of lectures, workshops, and even role-plays.
The courses will cover topics such as personal communication, body and verbal language, the dynamics of cultural diversity, and international protocol and diplomatic etiquette. The training will also adapt age-old principles to modern times, covering subjects such as communication with phones, email and social media.
The new programs will complement CUD’s current corporate training curriculum, which includes courses such as International Trade & Corporate Diplomacy, and Building Competence in a Cross-Cultural Environment.
It is also anticipated that there will be opportunities for undergraduate students in the School of Communication and Media Studies to benefit from Marchioness Mita’s expertise, through dedicated workshops around specific etiquette and protocol-related themes.
Speaking about the importance of the subject matter, Marchioness Mita said, “Knowing the rules of etiquette is a universal language. Learning this language empowers you to gain self-confidence in all situations of your life, either private or professional.”
Circuit Stream
Today, CUD’s Corporate Training & Life-long Learning Department, teamed up with Circuit Stream, a recognized industry leader in XR education in Canada.
The first programs will be launching in May! Stay tuned for more details.
CUD joins the International Association of Universities
Canadian University Dubai (CUD) has joined the International Association of Universities (IAU), further demonstrating our commitment to growing our global network of institutional partners and facilitating our education and applied research development to enhance our academic and cultural exchanges.
Founded in 1950, under the auspices of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the IAU is the leading global association of higher education institutions and organizations from around the world. As an independent, bilingual (English and French), non-governmental, membership organization, the IAU gathers more than 640 Members (institutions, organizations, affiliates and associates) from over 120 countries to identify, reflect, and act on common priorities.
As a respected global voice, the vision of the IAU is to promote collaboration among its members by articulating the fundamental values and principles that underpin the pursuit, dissemination, and application of knowledge. Central to these values and principles is the importance of international collaboration, tolerance, equity, and academic diversity.
The Association advocates for higher education policies and practices that respect diverse perspectives and promote social responsibility. Acting as a forum for sharing and joint action, the IAU encourages innovation, mutual learning, and cooperation amongst institutions.
CUD’s affiliation showcases the importance of developing mutually-beneficial global partnerships that strengthen our role in the international higher education community and contribute to the advancement of research and knowledge.
CUD Professor’s research paper on finding a solution to imbalanced data was published in international journal
A research paper by Dr. Firuz Kamalov, Associate Professor, Faculty of Engineering, Applied Science Technology at Canadian University Dubai, in collaboration with Dmitry Denisov of Deloitte/Careem, on finding a solution to deal with imbalanced data using the Gamma distribution was published in the leading AI journal, Knowledge-Based Systems.
Dr. Kamalov’s and Denisov’s research addresses the issue of imbalanced class distribution which is a common problem in a number of fields including medical diagnostics, fraud detection, and others. Imbalanced data causes bias in classification algorithms leading to poor performance on the minority class data.
Their paper proposed a novel method for balancing the class distribution in data through intelligent resampling of the minority class instances. The proposed method is based on generating new minority instances in the neighborhood of the existing minority points via a gamma distribution. Their method offers a natural and coherent approach to balancing the data.
Dr. Kamalov and Denisov conducted a comprehensive numerical analysis of the new sampling technique and gained insight into a more effective solution to imbalanced data. The research concludes that the new technique offers a simple yet effective sampling approach to balance data. This research highlights CUD’s commitment to quality research in collaboration with industry.
High Level Chinese Delegation Visits CUD
A delegation of sixteen Senior Chinese executives attended a workshop entitled “UAE Investment Landscape” facilitated by the University in collaboration with Oriental Wise Educational Consulting FZ-LLC and delivered by the Faculty of Management.
The group included CEO’s CFO’s Vice Presidents and Senior Managers from the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC), a state-owned enterprise administered by the Central Government of China. The Corporation operates actively in both domestic and overseas markets with construction and real estate business as its core business
CSCEC is the largest international contractor in China, being listed as one of the world top 225 international contractors by ENR. Prior to the workshop they met with Dr. Karim Chelli, President and Vice Chancellor of Canadian University Dubai.
The event was made possible due to our collaboration with Oriental Wise Educational Consulting FZ-LLC. Established in 2010, Oriental Wise focuses on high standard consultancy support, offering educational consulting services which include setting up branches for Chinese universities and educational institutions through the Sino-Arab cultural exchange.
Centre of Excellence Joins Leading Universities in Smart Cities Alliance
The Centre of Excellence for Innovation and Creativity (CEIC) based at Canadian University Dubai has joined the ranks of the International Observatory on Smart City Learning, connecting the UAE with leading European research institutions in the field of smart technology.
The International Observatory, hosted by the University of Rome Tor Vergata, brings together academics and research groups from several top European institutions – including Stockholm University, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Aalborg University, and Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg – to to promote transnational collaboration and debate on the challenges and opportunities of smart city learning.
Founded in 2013 as a subsidiary of Dubai Education LLC, the Centre of Excellence set out to support the UAE’s national strategic plan for 2021, including the goal of a sustainable and diversified economy through green development.
Under the direction of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the city has initiated a program of transformational projects that aims to build one of the world’s most connected and sustainable smart cities.
New CUD Collaboration to Prepare Employees for Vision 2021
Supporting the advancement of a competitive, knowledge-driven economy is top priority for The Brown Consulting Group and Canadian University Dubai (CUD) as the two organizations embark upon a partnership in the context of the UAE national strategic development plan, Vision 2021.
The new alliance will see CUD and Brown Consulting collaborate on the delivery of graduate and executive-level training in core business disciplines, to transfer key knowledge and skills to professionals and ultimately help them to make their organizations more efficient, productive and profitable.
The partnership has been developed to help support the Vision 2021 strategy, launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. In particular, it aims to contribute to one of the plan’s key pillars – to build a competitive knowledge-driven economy, by developing the talents of the workforce.
Mohamad Saadeddine, CEO of Brown Consulting explained, “One of the most important aspects of developing a competitive economy is ensuring that all levels of the workforce have the relevant skills and understanding to perform effectively. At lot of the training on offer remains largely theoretical and it is sometimes difficult for learners to apply this to their own work context. However, the programs that we offer are based on real business scenarios, which instantly help trainees to understand the practices discussed and to translate them to their own organization and role.”
The partnership with CUD will allow students enrolled in the University’s MBA program to benefit from practical training workshops in areas such as finance and human resources. Courses will also be open to organizations, their employees and the wider public through CUD’s Corporate Training Services. Uniquely, the training is offered in both English and Arabic, supporting the Vision 2021 goal to develop the talent of both national and expat employees.
Formalizing the agreement between CUD and Brown Consulting, the two organization came together to sign a Memorandum of Understanding at a ceremony witnessed by members of the business community, as well as CUD faculty and students. Signing on behalf of CUD, President and Vice Chancellor, Prof. Karim Chelli, said, “The University is committed to supporting the advancement of UAE society and we are delighted to enter into this partnership to provide a range of practical training solutions that will help to empower individuals, grow organizations, and contribute to a productive, competitive and diversified economy.”
