Emiratis capable of doing any job, say students

Those questioning the ability of local talent to participate in the development of the country got an answer of what UAE nationals are capable of during the Emirati Show, a programme produced by students from the Higher Colleges of Technology.

Fifteen media students at the Dubai Men's College (DMC) wrote and produced the talk show to address emiratisation and its importance. The show was sponsored by Watani - the national identity programme. The show brought together UAE national professionals and graduates to talk about the job market scene in the UAE.

A simple class assignment

The idea of the hour-and-a-half-hour programme evolved from a simple class assignment.

"This is a very important topic for UAE national students and graduates. So we decided to go big on it and produced what we called the Emirati Show," said Saud Al Tawila, a second year communication technology student at DMC and the public relations officer for the show.

The programme is the first of its kind to be produced by second year diploma students. "We did the show in the studio at the college. It has been a great opportunity because there are so many students who are in advanced years... .

They generally work on ordinary projects where they shoot the footage, come back, edit it and present it," said Abdullah Saif, programme producer. "When we graduate, we can say that we know how to function in a control room, use cameras, work with lighting and so on. We do not need to enrol in training programmes to learn that."

The show addressed four main issues:

- Social perceptions of certain careers;

- Obstacles facing the emiratisation process;

- The importance of training and development programmes,

- The role of connections or (wasta) in helping students land jobs after graduation.

"The message behind the show was to tell UAE national students who have not graduated that it is time they think seriously about the future. They should simply go ahead and do what they want. If working as a mechanic is the answer then why not," said Al Tawila. "There is nothing to be ashamed of. Also, we wanted the students to understand the concept of emiratisation and what they can do to serve their country and build its economy."

Speakers at the event

More than 2,000 students watched the show live from the college's main auditorium.

Four speakers took the stage to talk about their experiences and answer the audience's questions.

The speakers included Badriya Hamad, Dubai Airport inspector, Aida Hamza, Head of the Emiratisation Department at Standard Chartered Bank, Sara Adel, assistant manager of the Emiratisation Programme at The Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management, and Ayman Al Sa'di, higher diploma graduate from DMC.

‘We pulled it off'

The programme proved to be a challenge for some of the students.

"Not many people believed that we could pull it off," said Abdullah Al Hamadi, cameraman and producer. "However, we proved that it was a good show. What we tried to do when we worked on the script is to link the four guests and what they have to say to present a full picture... from different angles about emiratisation."

Most of the students learned new skills while working on the show.

Majid Al Abbar, the show's presenter, said that it was the first time he had taken such a job. "I was scared of facing large numbers of people; I did not know if people were going to like me or not. We used to train more than two times every day to get it right," he said.

The team said the reason why programme succeeded was the dedication of the programme producer Saif, who would stay up until four in the morning on many days to work on the show.

"As a producer I had to manage and oversee everything... we were pressed for time," he said.

"The Emirati Show in the end illustrated that UAE nationals should trust themselves. It showed them that they are qualified to work in any position they choose and should take pride in what they do," said Al Tawila.