Solent Business School's Marketing Report for Opening a Campus in UAE

[Name of Organization]

Solent Business School's Marketing Report for Opening a Campus in UAE

Introduction

Solent Business School (SBS) is a medium sized non-profit university; currently offering a range of premium undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in UK. SBS has approximately 5,000 students at its main campus in UK and as part internationalisation effort plans to expand by opening a campus in UAE. This paper will address the potential opportunities of setting up a similar business school in UAE as a formal report to the vice Chancellor of Solent Business School.

This report will provide an insight to United Arab Emirates. The report discovers education structure in UAE. Further, it will present analysis on Internationalisation opportunities in UAE and Existing industry structure and market potential, competitors analysis, mode of setting up of operations in UAE, the future of higher education in the UAE, assessed the service marketing mix strategy with regards to standardisation and/or adaptation and target market and positioning of the SBS The intention of this paper is to produce valuable information of United Arab Emirates and the hope is that all this information will help SBS to make correct decisions for opening a campus in UAE as an expansion effort.

Discussion

Education Structure in the UAE

The higher education system in the United Arab Emirates has undergone substantial change since the establishment of the country almost 40 years ago. As a country, the UAE was established in 1971 through a union between the rulers of the seven emirates, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khimah, and Fujairah, with Abu Dhabi being the capital city. While Dubai's economy is mainly generated through tourism and the financial sector, Abu Dhabi's economy relies largely on its oil revenues. In 2007 Abu Dhabi contributed nearly 56%of the GDP, while Dubai contributed just over 30%, and the remaining 24% was contributed from the other five Emirates (Bitar, 2009). At the time of the country's establishment in 1971, a total of 74 schools existed throughout the seven Emirates, and those who choose to pursue a higher education had to travel oversees. In 1977 the United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) was founded as the first university founded in the UAE, followed by Higher Colleges of Technology in 1988, which was initially a vocational school but today offers both graduate and postgraduate degrees across 17 campuses. Zayed University was the third university that was founded by the federal government in 1998.

Aside from the federal higher education institutions, a large number of higher education institutions exist in the UAE. Private universities in the UAE are either owned locally or they are extensions of foreign institutions, hence are managed by foreign institutions. Some of the private and locally owned institutions include the American University of Sharjah, which was established in 1997 by the ruler of Sharjah. In 1997 the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry established the Dubai University, and in 2006 the Abu Dhabi Education Council established Paris-Sorbonne ...