I take this opportunity to welcome all students, faculty members, and staff to the new 2023-2024 academic year, which promises to be a period of great transformation and achievement.

This academic year will see HCT refine our educational goals, with a deep focus on vocational training programs, while incorporating new programs in line with labor market needs; retaining a swathe of undergraduate programs; and offering new tracks to improve student inclusiveness and employment. As an applied science institution, our goal is to create highly trained students, who can go to the market and be employed in jobs that match their skills and interests.

A hallmark of this academic year will see us cater for high school applicants from different profiles, capabilities & interests as we implement HCT’s new, five-year education strategy, the features of which will include engagement with industry partners; co-designing and co-delivering of new education programs; continuous program feedback and review; and post-graduation training. In achieving the pillars of our educational strategy we will be strongly aligned to, and supporting, a wide cross-section of the UAE's employment market demands, where we will need to work with private sector stakeholders and align HCT strategies with private sector needs.

Complementary to these actions is the apprenticeship model, which we will pilot in the UAE, in conjunction with ADVETI, which we believe is the tool for HCT to improve the employability rate. It will see our students joining workplaces for 4-month programs and perform, be trained and assessed like employees, in order to be recruited. These apprenticeships will be embedded in all our programs and will be integral to a hybrid learning system, where students operate in labs, classes and workplaces.

At HCT our key objective is a very practical one - that our graduate employability rate will reach 60 per cent in the short term and 90% in the long term. This objective, or commitment, is unique for universities in the UAE, as it is a great challenge to achieve. We therefore need every member of HCT to work together to achieve that objective. Everyone in HCT needs to support, and be engaged, with that strategy. The challenge is not impossible. That objective is do-able, but ultimate target is to exceed that. If we are to become, as the community is labelling us, the “master of the market” in terms of education, we need to be committed to our new strategy in every aspect.

To date, we have already made great achievements in our operations and strategies due to the commitment and support of all HCT members. Working together we can meet our challenges and continue to grow and develop HCT. It is therefore completely within our power and capabilities to establish HCT as the best applied science university in the MENA region.

I am pleased to share that this catalog is a source of vital information on HCT’s programs, majors, courses, professional certifications, academic regulations, graduation requirements and much more.  Hence, I strongly encourage students to include this catalog in their collection of essential HCT resources, which should include the Student Handbook, Methaq Code of Conduct, Academic Advising booklets, student e-services, and the MyHCT app.

I urge all of you to make the most of your time at HCT - be focused and determined, set goals and never stop working hard to improve yourself by investing your time in activities beneficial to you and your communities.  Involve yourself in HCT’s well-established community service, volunteering, and extra-curricular activities.  All members of HCT are here to support our students in making progress towards their academic goals and their ultimate career paths. I therefore encourage all students to seek guidance and assistance, as needed, during this year, from our highly qualified faculty and staff. 

May God bless us all in our endeavors, as we work together towards a successful and rewarding 2023-24 academic year.

Dr Faisal Alayyan

President & CEO
Higher Colleges of Technology