Second batch of Masters students graduate from RIT Dubai

RIT Dubai and Dubai Silicon Oasis, the integrated free zone technology park, today celebrated the graduation of the second batch of postgraduates from the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) Dubai at a ceremony held at the RIT campus in Rochester, New York.

His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Zayed bin Saqer Al Nahyan, Chairman of the delegation accompanied the students to the 125th graduation ceremony at RIT New York. Other members of the delegation including Dr. Mohammed Al Zarooni, Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority, Essa Kazem, Chairman of Dubai Financial Market, and Dr. Mustafa AG Abushagur, President of RIT Dubai, attended the ceremony.

On the sidelines of the graduation, the RIT Dubai board held its annual meeting in the presence of Dr. Bill Destler, President of the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York. The agenda included discussions on the proposed budget for the next academic year, the university’s financial outlook and other operational matters.

The board also discussed the opening of the new campus of RIT Dubai at DSO, which is scheduled to take place in October this year. The incubation centre launched by DSO earlier this year, which is to be hosted at RIT Dubai, was also discussed. This centre aims to foster innovation, support technological projects and encourage viable entrepreneurship efforts in the field of technology through the provision of an enabling environment.

His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Zayed expressed his satisfaction on RIT Dubai’s achievements within a short period, since its inception in 2008. He noted that the University has started garnering positive results with the graduation of the second batch of the master's degree students. He stressed that this in turn supports the process of building and developing a broad base of talent and excellent expertise in the technology industry by adding value and strengthening and diversifying the higher education sector in Dubai and the UAE.

Dr. Mohamed Al Zarooni highlighted the importance of hosting the incubation centre at RIT Dubai. RIT’s longstanding reputation as an honoured institution of learning and technology concurs with DSO’s vision to become a leading global center for innovation, design and electronic projects.

Dr. Al Zarooni added that due to its outstanding academic programmes, the university has been able to attract an increasing number of students who wish to to obtain degrees that are recognized by the Ministry of Education in the UAE and the US Department of Education. This has led to a three-fold increase in the number of students enrolling at the university this year.

Located in the heart of Dubai Silicon Oasis, RIT Dubai aims to transform education through offering specialised degrees and flexible course schedules, as well as applied teaching techniques to students and industry professionals.

RIT Dubai currently provides undergraduate degree programmes in applied arts and sciences, business management, computing and information science, and engineering. It offers graduate degrees in business, mechanical and electrical engineering, service leadership, and networking and systems administration.