Dubai Real Estate Institute (DREI) has announced a partnership with Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan (KTH), the Royal Institute of Technology of Sweden.

Drei is the region’s first academic institute for real estate studies.

Under the four-year exclusive strategic deal, the two institutions will jointly offer a certified graduate diploma programme in real estate studies from the academic year 2007-2008.

The agreement was signed by Drei Managing Director Dr Mohamed Abdullatif Al Shehi and KTH head of the department of real estate and construction management Professor Stellan Lundström.

The partnership with KTH’s Department of Real Estate will play a key role in strengthening the scientific practice in the region’s real estate business, said Dr Al Shehi.

'Drei is the first industry-focused institution in the Middle East to provide high quality programmes in real estate education, training and research.

"We are actively seeking strategic partnerships with leading global universities to provide students with an unparalleled opportunity to develop their entrepreneurial skills and professional competency,' he said.

'The partnership with KTH will place us at the forefront of real estate education in the region and will position our academic offering as one of the world’s best,” he added.

Lundström said the accelerated growth in the GCC’s property sector demands a higher level of in-depth industry knowledge.

'Our exclusive partnership with Drei will offer education programmes designed to meet this requirement. We are committed to integrating KTH’s 40 years of Real Estate academic expertise and world class research with Drei’s current offerings.”

The graduate diploma in real estate will include courses in Introductory Economics and Quantitative Techniques, Real Estate Principles, Real Estate Investment Analysis, Real Estate Valuation and Real Estate Management and Market Analysis.

The signing ceremony was attended by Klas Ljungberg, the deputy head of mission at the Swedish Embassy in the UAE and Dr Hischam El Agamy, the chairman of the Drei Advisory Board and the board members. TradeArabia News Service