Brief

Higher College of Technology Awards 130 Students in HCT Skills 2026 Competition

The competition drew over 800 participants and was judged on WorldSkills standards.

By Felo News Desk · Published Mon, 28 Sep 2026 20:02:04 GMT

The Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) announced that 130 students were awarded certificates of appreciation at a ceremony held at its Dubai Academic City campus on 28 September 2026. The awards were presented by Dr. Faisal Alayyan, President and CEO of HCT, who said the competition is a key part of the college’s applied education model.

HCT Skills 2026 was the second edition of the event, which ran across HCT campuses in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. More than 800 students entered the competition, a 60 per cent rise from the 500 who competed in 2025. Participants tackled 39 applied and specialised skills in seven academic fields, including cybersecurity, robotics, advanced manufacturing, aircraft and drone maintenance, digital design and marketing, health sciences, communication and artificial intelligence.

Judging was carried out by a panel of experts from HCT and partner institutions, using criteria adopted from the Emirates Skills and WorldSkills competitions. The assessment framework was based on WorldSkills Standards, which benchmark technical and vocational education worldwide. Dr. Alayyan highlighted that the competition allows students to demonstrate their capabilities, identify development opportunities and strengthen competencies needed in a changing professional environment.

Dr. Nasser Humaid Al Nuaimi, Secretary General of the Tawazun Council for Defence Enablement, praised the event for building talent capable of leading advanced sectors. He said the competition provides a platform for young talent from diverse disciplines to compete, apply knowledge and gain practical experience.

Key facts

• 130 students received certificates of appreciation at the HCT Skills 2026 ceremony (gulfnews.com)
• The competition attracted more than 800 participants, up 60% from 2025 (gulfnews.com)
• Participants tackled 39 skills across seven academic fields (gulfnews.com)
• Judging used WorldSkills Standards and criteria from the Emirates Skills competition (gulfnews.com)
• Dr. Faisal Alayyan presented the awards and spoke about the competition’s role in applied education (gulfnews.com)

Sources

• [1] gulfnews.com — originally reported as “Higher College of Technology honours 130 winning students of ‘HCT Skills 2026’”