BUiD celebrates success at graduation ceremony

At the occasion BUiD also acknowledged the support extended by its founders, contributors and UK partners since the foundation of the University.

"These students have worked hard and achieved excellent results and they are to be congratulated, as are the founders, contributors and partners who had the vision and have enabled BUiD to be established and operated to the highest British standards," said Sheikh Ahmed.

For the founders of University - the Al Maktoum Foundation, British Business Group, Dubai Development Investment Authority, National Bank of Dubai and Rolls-Royce - the ceremony marked a successful outcome from their years of planning and investment.

"BUiD is delivering top quality masters programmes and developing its research capability. It is pleasing to see a growing number of significant organisations in the UAE engage with it," said Terry Holland, Regional Executive of Rolls-Royce.

The expertise of BUiD's British partners has shaped the intellectual and career development of the new graduates. BUiD is organised around specialised Institutes, offering distinctive disciplines, each linked to a leading UK partner university. Representatives from these UK institutions will be in attendance at the event.

The graduates are from a wide range of backgrounds and career histories. All the degrees offered at BUiD are at Masters level, meaning that students are often experienced individuals from the world of work. The majority combined part-time study with regular employment in order to obtain their new qualification. Over half the students at BUiD are UAE nationals.

"Each student's achievement represents a huge honour both for them and for the university. It clearly reflects the high international standards for which the institution and students alike are striving and are now being recognised for," said Vice-Chancellor Dr. Abdullah M. Alshamsi.

The University's contributors are also excited about the ceremony. For Dubai Duty Free, the Emirates Group and Hyder Consulting, among others, donations to the university are a mechanism for ensuring that today's students develop into the future professionals who will be in great demand in a booming economy.

"Working closely with the British University in Dubai is an important strategic decision that facilitates closer ties between higher education and, in the case of Atkins, strengthens our contribution to design of the built environment, particularly in key areas such as sustainability, " said Tim Askew, Middle East Regional Managing Director of Atkins, one of BUiD's contributor companies.

"We look forward to enhancing this mutual benefit and extending this relationship further in the years ahead," he added.

As the ceremony closed, lecturers and administrators returned to the university, preparing themselves for the task of recruiting and educating the next wave of dedicated postgraduate students.