Dubai College of Tourism (DCT) has announced a partnership with Udacity, the global online technical skills training provider that prepares the world’s workforce for careers of the future. Through this partnership, DCT continues to upskill tourism professionals within Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) with knowledge and training in the areas of Digital Marketing, User Experience Design and Artificial Intelligence.

The aim is to develop a technology savvy workforce in keeping with the rapid transformation taking place in the digital economy and to place data at the forefront of decision making across the organisation.

DCT selected Udacity to partner with due to its focus on project-based learning to build skills in core and emerging technologies.  Under the agreement signed between the two entities, training programmes will be implemented to equip Dubai Tourism professionals with the necessary skills to create technology-led campaigns that can drive visits from source markets and increase understanding of tourist media consumption.

Essa Bin Hadher, General Manager of Dubai College of Tourism, commented: “During these rapidly changing times, the path to success is to adapt to the new realities shaped by the digital economy, a critical driver of innovation and growth. Through this partnership with Udacity, the Dubai College of Tourism is keen to ensure that Dubai Tourism benefits from the investments it makes training its employees in new technologies. Udacity, with an abundance of expertise and experience in providing online training programmes will enable Dubai College of Tourism to move to the next level of its educational offerings, while at the same time adding value to the careers of Dubai Tourism’s employees by preparing them for the digital jobs of the future.”

Gabe Dalporto, CEO of Udacity, said: “Udacity is honoured to partner with the Dubai College of Tourism to build a future-ready workforce that’s able to make the most of emerging technologies. We are committed to supporting Dubai’s Tourism’s’s digital transformation journey and empowering their team to solve problems, meet customer needs, and seize market opportunities.”

Udacity’s training model enables organisations to build a pool of practitioners in emerging technologies and business practices within six months. Udacity's Nanodegree® programmes—co-created with industry leaders—feature hands-on learning with projects tailored to real-world scenarios that complement instructor-led sessions.

Dubai College of Tourism was established by Dubai Tourism as a vocational college to provide practical full-time higher education in Dubai in the subject areas of Tourism, Retail Business, Events, Hospitality and Culinary Arts. The college also runs the training and development department of Dubai Tourism.