Bayt.com, the Middle East’s number one job site, is to host one of the Middle East’s most innovative education job fairs – Virtual Education Fair2010 (VEF) – from23 to29 May, in conjunction with Dubai International Academic City (DIAC), a member of TECOM Investments’ newly created Education Cluster. Following the huge success of its inaugural VEF last year, Bayt.com’s pioneering education fair provides a free online platform which is open to all professionals and students interested in meeting with top academic institutions simultaneously.
Building on the tremendous success of its virtual job fairs in markets across the region, VEF provides a unique, fully-interactive online forum for academic admissions, offering significant advantages to both students and educational institutions compared with traditional academic fairs. As an online event, it will be ‘open’24/7 and can be accessed from any computer with an internet connection, providing participants with complete confidentiality and the convenience of participating from the comfort of their home or computer lab.
Commenting on VEF2010, Rabea Ataya, CEO of Bayt.com, noted, “We are very pleased to be bringing the second Virtual Education Fair to the Middle East, and are confident that it will prove every bit as popular as last year’s event, when we first introduced the concept to the region. The Virtual Education Fair – which we are proud to be running with the valuable support of DIAC – creates a dynamic virtual space where students and educational providers can achieve their respective goals and optimise their time and effort.”
At the VEF2010, students will be able to quickly and conveniently provide their personal details and academic credentials to a variety of top institutions, fill out paperless application forms, and gather the latest academic information from a virtual ‘resource centre.’ In addition, they will have the opportunity to engage in confidential e-chats with admissions staff, career consultants and other experts who can assist them with career decisions.
Dr. Ayoub Kazim, Managing Director, Education Cluster - TECOM Investments, said: “The Virtual Education Fair, organised in association with our technology partner Bayt.com, brings technology and education together in a unique initiative for the benefit of the wider community. This is part of our commitment to offer fresh growth opportunities for the academic community.
“The Virtual Education Fair comes in line with our efforts to support all stakeholders in the academic sector including the universities and students, not just within our cluster but across the region as well. We are confident the second edition of the event will prove beneficial to everyone in the community.”
Participating educational institutions will also enjoy a number of important benefits: a virtual fair provides excellent return-on-investment. No work-time is lost by physically attending or staffing the event, and travel/logistical costs are largely eliminated.
In addition, virtual forums are sophisticated vehicles for brand promotion: VEF2010 will assist in positioning institutions as forward-thinking academic leaders with a commitment to innovation. Through the VEF, educational providers will also enjoy access to a large pool of motivated candidates, helping them meet registration targets and allowing them to evaluate the success of enrolment strategies. Among the leading academic institutions participating in this year’s fair are the University of Liverpool as the main sponsor, Walden University as gold sponsor, Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology (SZABIST), Access MBA and the University of Manchester as silver sponsors and Robert Kennedy College and Ajman University of Science & Technology as platinum participants.
“The Virtual Education Fair offers an unprecedented opportunity for institutions to take their brand to a new level and recruit top students. The event serves as an ideal platform for students to interact with experts and acquire information on avenues of higher education,” commented Ataya. Through the VEF, Bayt.com and DIAC are demonstrating their commitment to furthering economic growth and talent development in the Middle East. Almost3000 students registered for last year’s Virtual Education Fair, which again took place in conjunction with Dubai International Academic City (DIAC).
“By assisting educational providers in increasing admissions and sharing their unique programming with a broad audience, Bayt.com is nurturing robust academic activity in the region, which in turn can lead to job-creation, scholarships, research and development, and a range of other benefits,” concluded Ataya.
For further information on Bayt.com’s pioneering Virtual Education Fair2010, or to register, visit https://www.vefme.com