There’s a building on Dundee’s Blackness Road which is described as a gateway between the city and the Middle East.
Most Dundee folk won’t have set foot inside Al-Maktoum College of Higher Education – but its head Dr Abi Abubaker hopes more of them will soon will.
The college was Scotland’s first ever institute for Arabic and Islamic studies when it opened in 2001.
It was established with funding from the United Arabic Emirates through the Al-Maktoum Foundation of the late Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, deputy ruler of Dubai.
Currently eight out of 10 of its students are from overseas.
But Dr Abubaker wants to change that by evening the balance between international and Scottish students.
Addressing any misconception that Al-Maktoum College is for Muslims only, Dr Bubaker stressed the institution is for everyone; people of all faiths or none.
He said: “We had incidents in the early days of people walking through the front doors and wanting to take their shoes off, as if they were entering a mosque. Why would they need to do that?
“But that’s another time altogether now, we are firmly established within the city and people understand what we do and why we are here.”
Students come from all over to study at Al-Maktoum College – Africa, the Middle East, Asia and beyond. It has more than 2000 graduates of more than 40 nationalities.
Courses include Islamic finance and Muslim family law, but also business and human resources. There are also beginners evening classes in Arabic language.
Stepping inside, you can see the appeal – it’s small and welcoming, the former Dundee College building aesthetically-pleasing, combining traditional and modern features and with a library stocked with beautifully-inscribed Arabic text and reference books.
Its lecturers are leaders in their fields.
The college is already making inroads to increasing local student numbers, working with schools including Morgan Academy, Grove Academy, Harris Academy, and Dundee and Abertay universities.
Dr Bubaker said: “We already have a good number of young people who are choosing us as a destination after they finish school and we want more of that.
“I would like to think we offer something different from the main colleges and universities.”
The college describes itself as “small in size, big in ambition”, with classes of around 10 students, rather than 20 or 30.
“We are small, we have almost like a family-orientated atmosphere. We can offer a lot of one-to-one care for young people,” said Dr Bubaker.
And he says it has something to offer for those work with Middle Eastern companies or like to travel, teaching both Arabic language and culture.
He said: “Arabic language can be very poetic, and a lot people are interested in learning it just because of the way it sounds.
“People want to go for a holiday in the Middle East, Egypt, Dubai or wherever.
“A lot of businesses work with Middle Eastern firms.
“It’s useful not necessarily to speak it fluently, but at least to have a few phrases or learn about the culture.”
What courses does Al-Maktoum College offer?
Al-Maktoum College, which is SQA-accredited, collaborates with universities for some of its courses, including Dundee, Abertay and Trinity College in Dublin.
These include Islamic finance and Muslim family law, but also business and human resource management.
Arabic language courses are offered from beginner to advanced level, taught by native speakers.
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