Tertiary Education and Bridge Programmes

Post-secondary facilities in Qatar are expanding to ensure the development of a well-educated, dedicated and innovative workforce, while acknowledging not all students wish to pursue a degree course. A variety of university scholarships are also available for nationals, expatriates and those residing outside Qatar.

There are private tertiary education institutions in Doha (full-time, part-time and through distance learning). A year’s full-time study at a branch campus of a foreign university in Qatar generally costs in excess of QAR100,000. Some scholarships may be available.

The Academic Bridge Program (ABP) C2 is a pre-university programme established in 2001 by Qatar Foundation (QF) for high school graduates from Qatar and other countries in the region. More than 4,000 students (mostly Qatari high school graduates, but also students from over 30 other countries) have graduated from their programme. Many have enrolled at one of the QF universities, Qatar University, or abroad at universities in the US or the UK. Over 80% of their graduates are admitted to university each year. abp.edu.qa

Qatar Finance and Business Academy (QFBA)

B4 was established in 2009 under the auspices of Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) to raise the financial services industry standards and help organisations and professionals achieve their learning and business objectives, thus aligned with Qatar National Vision 2030. It was set up with the intention to create a Qatar-based learning and development organisation for delivering pragmatic and innovative financial services education. Their programmes benefit entry-level to senior level executives within the sectors of banking, asset management, capital markets and insurance.

QFBA has a mandate to enhance the training and competency standards in Qatar’s financial sector.

4496 8333, qfba.edu.qa

QFBA has expanded its higher education offering to include BA degrees in Accounting, Finance and other related disciplines to complement its higher education programmes. QFBA’s partnership with Northumbria University opens a new gateway to a career in Accounting, Finance, and International Banking. qfba.edu.qa/northumbria-university

Established by QF in 2014, the Qatar Nanny Training Academy (QNTA) B3 aims to educate Muslim Arabic-speaking nannies that have the capacity to teach Islamic values. Students on the 10-month programme are drawn from Arab countries; the training includes specialised courses in all aspects of childcare, including first aid, nutrition, hygiene, education, and Arabic, Islamic and cultural studies. 4454 7351, qnta.qa

Qatar Skills Training Centre (QS) D3 is Qatar's largest and leading training provider, incubating world-class learning and development opportunities that benefit people, organisations and shared values. For more than a decade, QS has earned an astounding reputation for co-creating transformational learning experiences and providing high-quality, in-demand training to both individuals and organisations. QS provides competitive knowledge to leading global organisations through their selection of premium certified programmes delivered as face-to-face, live virtual training or blended. Every year, QS trains thousands of participants in the country's largest training facility in Qatar. QS offers over a thousand programmes divided into two categories: customised programmes designed for specific organisational needs and public programmes. QS built their reputation by transferring knowledge in technical, functional, and behavioural fields, and by providing certifications from prestigious institutes such as CMI, ILM, IOSH, Highfield, IoSCM, CII, IREM, Professional Academy ISM, CIM, SHRM, ACCA and more. Qatar Skills, committed in the development of human potential. 4416 1622, qatarskills.com.qa

Embassies and cultural centres generally have details of distance-learning courses, and often have an educational adviser, provide assistance with overseas university applications, and/or act as examination centres for overseas exams (see Foreign Embassies in the Discovering Qatar section).

Technical colleges and training programmes

Encouraging graduate and post-graduate studies in Qatar, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) authorised the development of a strategic plan with three objectives:

• To establish national vocational and technical competency standards for Qatar.

• To work in conjunction with the Higher Education Institute to integrate vocational and technical qualifications into a National Qualifications Framework.

• To establish specially designed vocational technical training facilities capable of providing internationally accredited competency standards that suit the needs of the Qatari labour market.