Middle East\'s First Online Education Fair Dubai - Agencies Over 12,000 registered students and 11 education institutes took part in the recently concluded Virtual Education Fair (VEF) held by leading Middle East job site, Bayt.com, in conjunction with Dubai International Acaemic City (Diac). The fair provided a unique, fully-interactive online platform for academic and training institutions, a statement from Bayt said. Dr AyoubKazim, managing director, Tecom Investments’ Education Cluster, said: “Bayt.com’s Virtual Education Fair is an innovative platform in academia, enabling both educational institutions and potential students to communicate with each other to understand and cover each others’ needs.” “Thousands of students this year learned more about admissions, financial aid, institutions and academic programmes from the Virtual Education Fair. The initiative has not only benefited the students but also our academic partners at a fraction of the cost of traditional education fairs,” he said. The Virtual Education Fair is a unique concept, allowing academic institutions and potential students the opportunity to interact though the flexible medium of an online platform that is designed to mimic the real-life fair experience. Visitors are given access to traditional fair facilities that enable them to chat with the institutions, download their brochures, and exchange information, but with the added convenience of being able to attend from anywhere within the world. This year’s VEF was a dynamic forum which provided students with the wide variety of information required to make the academic decisions that will define their future lives and careers. “Bayt.com’s Virtual Education Fairs are a part of our mission to empower people with the tools and knowledge to build their lifestyles of choice, even from the comfort of their own homes,” said Suhail Masri, vice president of sales, Bayt.com. “At Bayt.com, we are committed to assisting all professionals who are interested in bettering their careers, whether it is by helping them find jobs or further education opportunities. This is our fourth VEF in the region, not to mention our very successful Virtual Job Fair series as well, and we look forward to many more to come,” he added. For both students and participating educational institutions, there are minimal resource requirements in return for maximum exposure, meaning less costs and a higher return on investment than with a traditional education fair. “Through the event, Bayt.com and Diac continue to demonstrate their commitment to furthering economic growth and talent development in the Middle East for the fourth year running,” concluded Masri. “We are passionate about empowering students with academic information and career assistance, as we are helping tomorrow’s leaders and business professionals pave the way for future success.”