Dubai launches real estate diploma to attract Emiratis

Dubai is seeking to draw more Emiratis into its property sector by offering a dedicated diploma designed to channel nationals into a range of real estate professions.

The programme was unveiled on Monday by the Dubai Land Department (DLD) in partnership with the Higher Colleges of Technology. It will cover property management, valuation and appraisal, brokerage, landlord and tenant relations, and the promotion of real estate services.

The diploma will qualify 40 participants per cohort through a two-year programme comprising of 90 accredited hours.

DLD representatives said they expect to increase the number of Emiratis working in Dubai real estate from around 2,000 to 3,000 by the end of the year. 

DLD said there are 2,028 Emirati brokers, of whom 426 are women. Emirati brokers will be paid in commission, as is typical in the market, but also receive a minimum wage, a DLD representative told AGBI. 

There were 8,725 registered brokers – of any nationality – in the DLD system as of October 2025. 

Dubai’s residential and commercial sales were worth AED686.8 billion ($187 billion) last year, up almost 31 percent year on year, DLD data shows. Transaction volumes rose nearly 19 percent.

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As part of the diploma, Emirati students will get work placement opportunities with Dubai developers. Emaar Properties, Sobha Realty, Aldar Properties, Omniyat Developments, Azizi Developments, Danube Properties and Ellington Properties are all signed up to take part. 

DLD said that Emirati brokers would also be allocated specific properties to sell.

“The biggest sponsors like Emaar… have enough properties to sell and 100 percent that these students will get them [to sell],” Abdullah Al Shehi, CEO of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority, said.