First Filipino college set to open in UAE

  DUBAI – The first Filipino college is set to open in Ras Al Khaimah in 2021 to cater to higher education needs of expatriate children in the UAE. Southville International School and Colleges-RAK Campus will be headed by Rommel Sergio. The Presidential Awardee and Dakilang Bayani Awardee serves as president and founding partner. Sergio said setting up the college was a mission extremely close to his heart. “I was a drop out. I had to source my way out; get a scholarship. I found out education is really vital to our survival. Now, I am running for my third PhD and also supporting scholars in my hometown,” Sergio told Expatmedia.net at the launch on Sunday (December 20). Southville RAK Campus is slated to open in the fourth quarter of 2021. The college will initially offer courses in psychology, accountancy, marketing management, financial management, entrepreneurship and human resources, and a master’s course in business administration. The cost per semester is Dh550 per unit, with each subject generally having three units. Payments can be made in installments, with a 40 percent initial payment during enrolment. Sergio said opening the first Filipino higher education institution in the UAE took four years of negotiations and preparation. He credited Philippine Ambassador to the UAE Hjayceelyn Quintana for providing the inspiration and support to make the game-changing project happen. Sergio said that prior to finding support from the right people, he and his team were initially “rejected several times” while they were still presenting their concept to find a partner school and that proposals “were shelved for some time”. Finally, they were able to find the perfect partner in Philippine-based accredited college Southville, which reportedly had actors Liza Soberano, Enrique Gil and Jodi Sta. Maria as their students and alumni. “We were rejected several times in a way that we had to present our concept. Our proposals have been shelved for a certain time,” Sergio said, adding that support from authorities in Ras Al Khaimah made it easier to set up the college. Southville RAK Campus will also be run by Rex Bacarra as Academic Head. Bacarra is one of its five founders. “Personally, as a teacher who is immersed in the academic institution, for me this is the culmination of my teaching career. Being able to establish an academic institution for the Filipinos,” Bacarra told Expatmedia.net. Bacarra said Southville RAK Campus will bridge the gap between Filipino students who grew up in the UAE and affordable education without having to be uprooted from the culture they have grown accustomed to in the emirates. PIA/Expat Media
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