Dubai: Companies hiring fresh graduates prefer those with the “right attitude” over their qualification or university’s ‘brand image’, a new survey of university students in the UAE suggests.
The findings are among a series of surprising and “counter intuitive” results of the 2016 Qudurat Wave III report released on Saturday, which surveyed almost 1,000 students in 10 academic institutions in Dubai earlier this year.
The study, held once every three years since 2009, was commissioned by HR consultancy Aon Hewitt and Dubai International Academic City (DIAC). Besides surveying Emirati and expat students, it had also gathered feedback from dozens of employers in the UAE and GCC.
“Sixty-four per cent of companies hire people with the right attitude, but students don’t believe that. They believe in ‘the right qualification’,” said Elias Dib, partner, Aon Hewitt Middle East.
Even then, many students don’t seem to be holding the required credentials. According to the report, 57 per cent of employers said their key challenge is “the lack of availability of talent with the necessary qualifications”.
Meanwhile, “zero per cent of employers are looking at the brand image of the [candidate’s] university”, Dib added.
He said some of the findings suggest the presence of a “mismatch” or “supply-demand paradox” between the expectations of employers and aspirations of students — 26 per cent of whom see themselves as the CEO or general manager in 10 years.
Staying put
The report also said seven in 10 university students intend to stay in the UAE. The number of university students planning to stay in the UAE after graduating has risen 19 per cent since 2013, to 69 per cent today.
Their reasons for staying include course satisfaction, with 84 per cent of students saying their course of study in the UAE meets their expectations. Other pull factors are private sector careers, job opportunities and an attractive cosmopolitan lifestyle.
DIAC managing director Mohammad Abdullah said: “Having a strong academic ecosystem in Dubai will provide students who aspire to create the economies of tomorrow with the infrastructure that is needed to get there.
“As Dubai seeks to create an innovative economy, findings from the 2016 Qudurat report demonstrate how aspirations of students are changing and how young people are becoming far more entrepreneurial and optimistic about their future because of the opportunities to fulfil their ambitions in Dubai.”
Highlights from the report were recently shared with education and industry representatives during a presentation by Aon Hewitt at Dubai Knowledge Park.
It showed that, contrary to popular belief, Emirati students lean towards private sector jobs, and not government placements. Only 17 per cent of Emiratis opted to work for the public sector in the latest “wave” of the study, as compared to 53 per cent in the previous wave, held around three years ago.
They also prefer professional development over pay.
Meanwhile, no Emirati woman graduate wants to be a homemaker, the findings suggest. Out of the few hundred Emirati women students surveyed, none of them wanted to become a homemaker. Twenty-six per cent of them mentioned they want to start their own business, while 22 per cent want to work in the semi-government sector.
‘Counter intuitive’
Dib said during the presentation that some of the findings are “counter intuitive”. For instance, the results indicate that Emiratis “have no issues working with the opposite gender. It’s more of the expats that say they have an issue,” he added.
Moreover, while four in 10 employers say language skills are important, only one per cent of students agree.
Report highlights
69 per cent of university students plan to stay in the UAE after graduating
Only 17 per cent of Emiratis opted to work for the public sector
No Emirati woman wants to become a homemaker after graduating
64 per cent of companies hire students with the right attitude, versus the right degree
Just one per cent of students believe language skills are important, compared to 10 per cent of employers
Companies are least interested in the ‘brand image’ of a job candidate’s university
26 per cent of students see themselves are the CEO or general manger in 10 years
