The Unit for Teaching Excellence and Leadership (UTEL) at the University of Bahrain is responsible for the delivery of teaching development programs and workshops to academic staff. The UTEL offers a variety of faculty development opportunities that cater for the different developmental needs of academics depending on their years of experience and the roles they assume.

Currently, the UTEL offers three routes for faculty development. The first route offers short duration bespoke workshops (BW) on specific popular topics in higher education. These are offered throughout the academic year and are open to all academic staff. The second takes a more holistic approach to faculty development that requires the participant to enrol in a full year Advance Higher Education (AHE) accredited faculty development programs (AP) that addresses higher education teaching in a generic way allowing the faculty member to select their own path for improvement while encouraging reflective practice and engagement with scholarship of teaching and learning. This route has several paths that take into account the teaching experience of the participant. The third strand is the academic leadership program (ALP) designed specifically for faculty in academic leadership roles.

Realizing the importance of sharing good practices and experiences in the higher education sector that would inevitably lead to constructive dialogue and improvement of overall learning experience of higher education students, the UTEL has encouraged the participation of academic faculty members from other local and regional universities in its programs since 2016. It has also successfully sought Tamkeen support for several of its program. The following presents the details of all the three routes offered by the UTEL.