REGIONAL ROUND-UP
AFRICA APAC EUROPE MIDDLE EAST NORTH AMERICA
UAE LEARNERS SEEK KEY BUSINESS SKILLS TO THRIVE IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY
Coursera , one of the largest online learning platforms in the world , has released its annual study of learner trends across the United Arab Emirates ( UAE ). The data , based on the content choices of over 560,000 registered UAE learners , offers insight into the skills , competencies and subject matter most accessed by the country ’ s population . Reflecting the ongoing need to mitigate the effect of COVID-19 , the UAE ’ s top course this past year was Johns Hopkins University ’ s COVID-19 Contact Tracing ( third in 2020 ).
The 2021 data also shows that UAE learners were particularly enthusiastic about courses that offer the business skills needed to thrive in the global economy , including negotiation , professional English-language competency and an understanding of financial markets . This trend reflects the UAE ’ s world-leading business skills proficiency rating , as the country ranked 2nd globally in this domain in the 2021 Coursera Global Skills Report . Top courses aimed at improving business skills taken by UAE learners in 2021 included :
• University of Pennsylvania ’ s English for Career Development ( fourth in 2021 and 2020 )
• University of Michigan ’ s Successful Negotiation : Essential Strategies and Skills ( eighth in 2021 , 6th in 2020 )
• Yale University ’ s Financial Markets ( 10th in 2021 , 7th in 2020 )
The 2021 study also found that UAE learners sought to equip themselves with the technological and data science skills that are in high demand in the modern , technology-centric economy . Ranked second last year was Google ’ s Foundations : Data , Data Everywhere , which forms part of Google ’ s Data Analytics Professional Certificate .
Foundations : Data , Data Everywhere , was joined in the UAE top-ten by Stanford University ’ s Machine Learning ( third up , from fifth in 2020 ) which speaks to an increasing desire among UAE learners to adapt to a workplace increasingly defined by AI-driven automation .
These trends also represent learners taking steps that will help to improve the UAE ’ s competitiveness in Coursera ’ s Data Science and Technology domains , for which the country ranked 71st and 72nd respectively in the 2021 Global Skills Report .
“ 2021 ’ s learner trends suggest that the UAE is in a strong position to consolidate its world-leading status for business skills proficiency ,” said Anthony Tattersall , Vice President of EMEA , Coursera .
“ It is also encouraging to see high uptake of data science and technology courses that prepare the country to reduce its skills gap in these domains , as illuminated by our Global Skills Report .
" This year , we look forward to working together to make online learning even more effective and equitable for the UAE ’ s learners by delivering new world-class content and tools .” x
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