New Middle East Universities Shape The Post-Oil Knowledge Economy

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Traditionally, the relationship between the U.S. and the Middle East has been defined by oil and geopolitics. However, over the past few decades, another equally significant exchange has been taking place: the development of higher education in the Middle East. This educational revolution, driven by the establishment of new universities in the UAE, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, is laying the foundation for a post-oil knowledge economy that could reshape the global landscape in unexpected ways.

New Universities In Saudi Arabia, UAE And Qatar

Since 2000, Saudi Arabia has opened 35 universities, with notable institutions like King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Prince Mohammad bin Fahd University (PMU), and Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University (PNU). KAUST, established in 2009, is particularly ambitious, aiming to lead in clean hydrogen and artificial intelligence research. According to Dr. Tony F. Chan, KAUST’s president, the university aspires to be a global leader in clean hydrogen research, positioning itself as a hub for innovative solutions to global challenges.

KAUST stands out as a beacon of this new educational landscape. Initially led by former Caltech President Jean-Lou Chameau, KAUST attracted top academics from budget-strapped Western universities, significantly bolstering its research capabilities. In 2016, it ranked 19th globally in the Nature Index of “Rising Stars” for high-quality science and is currently first in the Times Higher Education Arab University Rankings.

In the UAE, 33 universities have sprung up over the same period. Abu Dhabi University, Zayed University, and American University of Sharjah are among the most prominent, contributing more than 140,000 students enrolled across 71 universities. These institutions are gaining international recognition, with Khalifa University, United Arab Emirates University, and American University of Sharjah ranked 181, 288, and 348 respectively in the QS World University Rankings 2024.

Qatar’s Education City is home to eight universities, including Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, Weill Cornell Medical College, and Carnegie Mellon University. These institutions, established between 2001 and 2005, collectively enroll more than 10,000 students. Increasing political tensions due to Qatar’s ties with Hamas and political instability in the region have jeopardized many of these ventures, however, resulting in the recent shuttering of the Texas A&M campus in Qatar.

The boom in higher education has resulted in the construction of lavish branch campuses in Qatar, over 30 new universities in the UAE since 2000, and a projected demand for 800,000 new seats in Saudi Arabian universities by 2030. However, this rapid growth has not been without controversy. Issues such as the harsh conditions faced by workers building these campuses and concerns about academic freedom have raised questions about the value of these investments. Additionally, many of these universities primarily enroll foreign students, leading to uncertainty about whether this global talent will remain in the region to contribute to its future economy. Nonetheless, the achievements of recent graduates are impressive. NYU Abu Dhabi alone has produced three Rhodes Scholars, five Schwarzman Scholars, and numerous graduates who have gone on to further studies at prestigious institutions like Cambridge, Oxford, and Harvard.

Building For The New Post-Oil Generation

The driving force behind these developments is the strategic goal of these oil-rich states to ensure prosperity in a post-oil era. Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, UAE’s Minister of Economy, has articulated an ambitious vision to grow the economy by 7% in 2024 and double gross domestic product by 2030. In Saudi Arabia, the Vision 2030 plan places education and sustainable energy at the forefront of its future economy, with the development of NEOM—a futuristic green city—as a centerpiece. According to a NEOM press release, “education is central to achieving NEOM’s ambitious goals,” said Nadhmi Al-Nasr, CEO of the project.

Two critical factors underpin this educational surge: a youthful population and substantial financial resources. In the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region, 55% of the population is younger than 30, compared to 37% in the U.S. and 25% in Japan. This demographic advantage, coupled with significant funding—over $10 billion in Saudi Arabia, $3 billion in the UAE, and $1.3 billion in Qatar—has fueled the rapid construction of new universities. Many of these institutions partner with Western universities, such as NYU Abu Dhabi, Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi, and University College London Qatar, bringing a global dimension to their educational offerings​​.

Saudi Arabia’s NEOM University

Perhaps the most ambitious educational venture is within Saudi Arabia’s NEOM project. This $500 billion initiative aims to transform an uninhabited region in northwest Saudi Arabia into a thriving metropolis. Its main city is envisioned to house a million people, and a battalion of construction equipment is building its ports, an airport, shopping areas, housing, commercial districts, and a school. The NEOM project is developing 10,200 square miles for its main city and building a linear city 170 miles long and 0.3 miles wide in the middle of the country, in a development known as the Line, which in many ways resembles a Mars colony. NEOM University, slated to enroll 10,000 students and employ 1,000 faculty by 2030, will serve as the intellectual engine driving this transformation.

To build a pipeline for talented workers who can implement such an ambitious project, the Saudi government has created a NEOM scholarship program to fund education for cohorts of Saudi students to complete tertiary studies abroad and to fund work experiences. The NEOM scholarship program has supported 740 students and recent graduates since its inception in 2019, and these students have studied at top universities in the U.S., the U.K. and within Saudi Arabia. After graduation, these recent graduates are given position within NEOM, enabling the program to “cultivate a generation that not only excels in their respective fields, but contributes to Saudi’s Vision 2030” according to Al-Nasr.

Al-Nasr also highlighted the vital importance of education as “the fundamental foundation of every society” that “envisions nothing less than a new future for the world,” ET HR World reported. Andreas Cangellaris, the founding president of NEOM, sees NEOM University as providing an opportunity to “embrace the latest educational theories and technological innovations to shape the future of learning” for “driving progress on a global scale.” Projects like NEOM exemplify the Middle East’s ambitious investment in higher education which will make the vision of the post-oil future real and based in sustainable new industries that could reshape how the world thinks about the Middle East as a global hub of future-oriented knowledge industries instead of as the world’s reservoir of fossil fuels.