Dubai: For 40 UAE national students enrolled at secondary and tertiary educational institutes across the country, this summer has been a period of continued learning and personal development.
The youngsters, ages 15 to 25, participated in the annual summer training programme hosted by Dubai Aluminium Company Limited (Dubal) as part of the company's ongoing Emiratisation initiatives.
Work environment
This year's programme ran from June 20 to July 29, giving the students the chance to learn about the aluminium industry while benefiting from personal exposure to a real-life working environment, through which they acquired technical and practical skills and also matured as individuals.
By providing these opportunities, the programme has once again contributed to fulfilling the vision of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, UAE Minister of Finance and Chairman of Dubal, to raise the standards of professionalism among young UAE nationals as a means to accelerate the prosperity of the nation as a whole.
True to tradition, the group enrolled for the 2010 summer training programme comprised both male and female students, 30 from high schools and 10 from various colleges and universities.
The latter included university students on Dubal's scholarship programme, who are contractually bound to work at Dubal for the summer vacation periods throughout the duration of their funded studies (and for an equivalent number of years thereafter), thereby enhancing their understanding of their future roles within the organisation.
After a comprehensive orientation session, the students were deployed in various departments across Dubal in accordance with their educational background and interests.
Technical instruction
During the programme they also received instruction on technical operations, and attended management skills development courses on a weekly basis — the latter providing valuable life skills in the areas of communications, teamwork, time management and leadership.
This year, for the first time, the working hours for the summer training programme were extended to full eight-hour working days, rather than the half-days of past years — a move which was well received by both departmental employees and the trainees.
The programme concluded with a ceremony on Thursday, at which participation certificates and gifts were presented to each student.
