An overview of higher education in the Arabian Gulf

Arab Gulf states have attracted media attention in recent years as an arguably dominant force in global higher education (HE) provision. They have not only succeeded in attracting internationally reputed higher education institutions (HEIs) but also western and/ or western trained faculty (i.e., academics) and to a large extent an influx of international students. This study adopts a 3 × 3 × 3 matrix in an attempt to highlight attempts at a trend reversal in the Gulf HE sector from being a centre of knowledge reception to one of knowledge production, however controvertible.