In 2017, when GEMS first started the co-development of the new British International University (BIU) in the Kurdish region of Iraq, it was crystal clear that the major attraction of a British TNE offering would have to include medical education.
The problem was twofold – the UK did not and does not have a sustainable supply of doctors or dentists, with university seats capped at around 12,000 per year – not even close to meeting the continuing demand (26,820 applications from the 2023 UCAS cycle alone). Fuelling the demand is significantly attributable to the cliché of “doctor, lawyer, engineer” as acceptable career choices for the aspirant professional class.
British TNE offerings offshore mainly targeted emerging and secure economies in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, surefooted in the knowledge that a pathway to the UK would be a viable revenue generator and that the cultivation of British soft power had indeed borne very ripe fruit. However, the fundamentals of risk management meant that certain student cohorts were underserved. Security considerations, academic freedom, and reputational concerns led to the exclusion of many countries from consideration for TNE deployment.
GEMS went into the Kurdistan region of Iraq in 2017 with all of this in mind. Amir Saadati, executive director, was fully aware of the barriers to success that would come.
“I understand completely that the academic community would wince at the idea of exposing their institutions to the risks that come with deploying a medical programme in recovering communities,” he says. “But for us, that was the impetus that drove us forward. We are a total solutions partner – I believe in the UK there are certain misconceptions about some countries and nothing gives me more joy in taking UK partners to ‘challenging’ places and showing them the potential of both the country and more importantly its youth.
“The perception that the media portrays is never accurate. You must go and visit to understand what can and can’t be done. I’m always asked about security, but isn’t that reflective of everywhere? Are all parts of the UK considered safe all the time? We must remove the stigma and go out and visit!”
Eight years and a lot of tough work later, BIU is now entering its third year of operations. BIU is the first institute of higher education in Iraq to offer undergraduate degrees from a UK university with programmes in computer science, LLB, business administration and architectural engineering.
Additionally, through GEMS’ exclusive agreement with the University of Surrey, GEMS is providing Kurdish, Iraqi, and international students the opportunity to study a British pre-clinical degree in medical sciences with the option of continuing at graduate entry medical school to complete their MBBS. The University of Surrey has teamed up with GEMS Middle East to deliver this new medical sciences degree course, strengthening the academic partnership between the institutions. This innovative partnership allows students to study with GEMS and complete a University of Surrey BSc in medical sciences.
The educational barriers of distance and access in Iraq were firmly cracked, if not completely broken. Equitable access to education is a journey that will take generations to complete, and the beautifully crafted and laboriously checked proposals often do not take into consideration the reality of proposing anything new or untried to communities suspicious of strangers and the risk of being exploited, with good reason. But Iraq was the centre of medical education in the past, and there is no reason it cannot be in the future.
Equitable access to education is a journey that will take generations to complete
April Keith, who was the academic lead at BIU in 2024, was clear about the difficulties of getting a brand new TNE course off the ground and running.
“I sat down with both students and parents for every applicant to the medical science programme and listened to their concerns and doubts. I reassured them where I could, learned from them and adapted where necessary and, above all, ensured that every applicant was clear on the challenges that would come from being the first cohort, the first to market,” she explains.
“We had to take on local and national regulators who were intent on ensuring that any higher education course was in line with their own requirements, not just accepting British standards as a matter of course. We did not expect the red carpet to be laid out, and we had extraordinarily staunch support at strategic levels of regional and national governments, but we also knew that we had to prove our worth, not the other way around.
“We are responsible for the wise investment of years of savings and financial commitments of our students’ families, and we take that trust very seriously.”
Students who wish to study medicine at a British university now have the opportunity to start on that journey at BIU in Erbil, at Ajman University in UAE, and at IIHS Multiversity in Colombo, with expanding opportunities across Pakistan, South Africa, Malaysia, Kenya, and several other emerging markets.
This growing network of educational pathways represents a significant advancement in breaking down barriers to medical education globally. Industry leaders and educational pioneers will explore these developments further at the upcoming Transnational Medical Education Partnership Forum 2025, scheduled for May 20, which will bring together stakeholders to share insights and forge new partnerships that will continue to transform access to quality medical education worldwide.
For more information about the Forum please contact international@gemsconsult.ae.
About the author: Dr Amir Saadati is an internationally recognised strategist and advisor in education, workforce development, and cross-border policy. As executive director of GEMS Middle East, he oversees one of the region’s most influential education networks, encompassing 44 schools, 72 vocational colleges, and two universities across the Middle East and South Asia. His leadership continues to shape national education strategies, applied learning ecosystems, and global education partnerships across diverse contexts.
