In line with the Future Foresight Strategy launched by the UAE Government in 2016, and in tandem with the government’s efforts to prepare for the next fifty years, the Center for Futures Studies at the University of Dubai has conducted a study anticipating the future of education in 2050.

Through a horizon scanning approach (a method used to identify early signs of potential change), the study identifies key variables and markers of change that could shape the future of higher education, impacting learning methods and tools, educational institutions and the education system as a whole. The study considers various scenarios for the future of higher education institutions, and makes recommendations focused on ensuring adaptability, keeping pace with change, and shaping the future of higher education in the UAE and wider world.

The study includes interviews with academic leaders from around the world, who reflect on the changes likely to affect education in the decades to come, specifically offering their perspectives on the future of higher education.

The research team behind the study presented their outcomes during a conference at the University of Cambridge, outlining four main scenarios for the future of higher education; lifelong learning, limited learning, artificial learning, and collapsed learning.