DUBAI--1 October, 2013--Dr. Nasser Nassiri, the chair of the Computer and Information Science Faculty (CIS) at the Higher Colleges of Technology - Dubai Women's College (DWC) was presented with the SAP Visionary Award, from 400 delegates,  during the recent SAP academic conference in Munich, Germany.

The award was given to Dr. Nassiri because of his dedication and commitment to the SAP University Alliances Program (UAP) in the UAE, designed to boost the number of Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) graduates with cutting-edge IT skills needed by the UAE's work places.  Dr Nassiri was the only academic from the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region to be presented with the prestigious award.

The HCT signed an MOU with the SAP University Alliances Program in 2012 through which SAP provides HCT campuses with advanced curricula, technologies, academic research and custom-tailored courses and projects which develop highly qualified graduates with critical skills for the 21st century workforce. The SAP University Alliances Program aims to shape the future of higher education. It promotes a practical and future-oriented education by providing access to the latest SAP technologies to over 8,000 tutors and more than 1.4 million students worldwide. The programme supports universities and vocational schools to actively integrate SAP software into their teaching as well as to run their own operations on the most innovative SAP software.

Last academic year, 276 HCT students and faculty used SAP software across HCT campuses and six SAP related activities were conducted - SAP REP 3 training sessions, SAP Roadshow, 2 SAP CodeJam. The HCT CIS Faculty plans to increase these activities and to integrate more SAP enterprise resource planning ERP into IT and Business courses in the HCT's Computer and Information Science and Business curricula.

Dr. Saoud Al Mulla, Director of HCT-Dubai Colleges, said "As we continue to develop our students' skills, it is so important to give them the contemporary employability skills required in the UAE to boost their employment opportunities with cutting-edge IT skills."

Dr. Hamad Odhabi, Executive Dean of the Computer Information Science and Applied Communications Faculty said "SAP, through its enterprise applications, offers HCT IT students a real-life perspective on how business is done in the 'real world'. With these skills our students become worthy candidates to fill many employment vacancies with SAP partners in the UAE."

Dr. Nasser Nassiri, Chair of CIS department at DWC said, "I am excited to get this visionary award from the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region. The SAP UAP program has been driven strategically to boost employment of HCT students." He added that the SAP UAP Program enables the students to experience first-hand how organizations operate, and how integrated systems can make them more efficient, productive, and profitable.

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About the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT)
Founded in 1988 with four colleges, the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) have grown to be the largest of the Higher educational institutions in the UAE, gaining a well-respected reputation for innovative learning. More than 20,000 students attend 17 modern men's and women's campuses in the cities of Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Dubai, Ras Al Khaimah, Sharjah, Fujairah and the western region cities of Madinat Zayed and Ruwais.

The HCT offers a wide range of English-taught programs in Applied Communications, Business, Education, Engineering Technology, Computer & Information Science, General Education and Health Sciences. These programs are all relevant to the UAE's fast growing and evolving economic sectors. All programs are designed in consultation with business and industry leaders to ensure that the skills students learn are job-relevant and meet high standards. They are constantly monitored to ensure they are at the cutting edge of industry standards and technological change.
For more information,please visit: www.hct.ac.ae                   

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For more information, please contact
Abrar Mikkawi
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Dubai Women's College/Higher Colleges of Technology
Tel: 04-208-9269
Fax: 04-267-3939
Email:abrar.mikkawi@hct.ac.ae

© Press Release 2013