Inspiring the Middle East’s next generation of built environment professionals

Following the success of the Design Engineer Construct! (DEC) curriculum around the world, Class Of Your Own has identified Uptown International School as the ‘DEC Centre for Excellence for the Middle East’.  

Uptown International is the first school in the region to sign up to the programme. We will work together with Class Of Your Own, its academic partner Heriot-Watt University, and the school to provide students with real world insight to enhance both teaching and learning.  

DEC by award-winning Class Of Your Own is an education scheme which supports science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) learning, with the aim of inspiring young people to discover pathways into careers in the built environment. 

Their dedicated through-school curriculum is built on 21st-century principles designed to close the construction industry's ongoing skills gap and benefits students with key learning modules in digital technologies, modern methods of construction, sustainability and net zero.  

Adam Ralph, Country Manager, UAE said: 

"As a leading employer in our industry, we recognise the critical role we play in attracting the next generation of talent."

Through partnering with Class Of Your Own and Uptown International School, we aim to bring a wider, more diverse pool of people into successful careers in the built environment, both in the UAE and across the Middle East.

Alison Watson, Founder and Chief Executive, Class Of Your Own said: 

"Our transformational learning programme is dedicated towards positioning construction and the built environment as a modern industry which is aligned to carbon and climate change."

Working with Turner & Townsend and the teachers at Uptown International School, we strive to inspire today’s youth, transform how careers within construction are perceived, and promote professional routes into the industry from a young age.

"In doing so, we hope to be able to inspire design, engineer and construct extraordinary futures for DEC’s students." 

Linsey Thomson, Associate Professor, School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society, Heriot-Watt University, Dubai said: 

"Heriot-Watt University has been a long-standing collaborator with Class Of Your Own on a global scale and is delighted to be the supporting academic partner for this exciting venture in the UAE."

With our expertise in delivering built environment qualifications to undergraduate and postgraduate students, we are keen to assist Turner & Townsend and the Uptown teaching team in inspiring students through this outreach initiative. 

"We firmly believe in the synergy between industry practice and educational settings, and by extending our reach beyond our Dubai Campus, we aim to enrich the community and nurture the future professionals of the design engineering and construction sector."

Rob Commons, Principal, Uptown International School said:  

"At Uptown International School, we’re immensely proud to be playing a leading role across the region in this ambitious project. Class of Your Own have a long-established reputation for excellence in educating the future workforce for key roles in the construction industry."

The opportunity to work in tandem with the world class teams at Turner & Townsend and Heriot-Watt University is a game-changer for our students. Through this partnership, children across our entire school will be inspired to become architects, designers, engineers and project managers in the future.