Universities in Dubai are changing their attitudes towards staff and student mothers by adopting ways to accommodate them and ultimately protecting their investments.
The University of Wollongong in Dubai (UOWD) recently opened a nursing room on its Dubai Knowledge Village (DKV) campus to make new mothers' lives easier.
"From a business perspective many of our staff are women so it becomes expensive to train them only to have them leave," said Naomi Munro, Human resources (HR) manager at UOWD. "In the long run it's cheaper to invest in options which allow them to stay," she added.
The nursing room at UOWD makes available to mothers a safe room to breastfeed. They also have access to a baby changing station, a fridge-freezer and a microwave to store and sterilise milk and baby bottles.
"For us it's a retention strategy. Large numbers of our staff are women at the age of bearing children. With the UAE currently in the middle of a baby boom, this is how we can accommodate working mothers," said Munro.
Life-changing
Jenny Knowles Morrison, a UOWD assistant professor of business and HR, who has a five-month-old baby is able to juggle work and motherhood much better, thanks to the nursing room. Her husband also works at UOWD.
"It's very difficult to feed in public and this room makes it possible for me to bring her to the work place — because I obviously can't bring her into my office," said Morrison. "It's an amazingly helpful thing because it provides those small things that help a lot but most people don't think about," she added.
For expatriate students and workers such facilities are crucial as they provide mothers with options when the luxury of family support is not available.
"Without family support it can be difficult. My parents recently came to visit and it was a huge help having them around to take the load off a bit," she said.
Creative mother
However, student mothers at most universities are not as lucky. Elissa Neeson recently graduated from Middlesex University Dubai and had two children during her time there.
With no crèche facilities available at DKV, besides a commercial nursery, Neeson had limited options.
"In the university there is no facility for babies, but Middlesex made an exception and allowed me to breastfeed in an empty meeting room," she said. The university administration would take turns babysitting her son while she attended classes, said Neeson. "By the end of it, everybody, from the receptionist to the guards, knew my son."
Comparing her time at university in the UAE with that in the US, she said: "I feel that universities here are not prepared for it [student mothers] and not very encouraging of mothers with newborns who want to continue their education."
She said one reason could be due to the fact that domestic help is common practice in the UAE. Therefore institutions do not feel the need to cater to those without it or who do not want it.
"In the US most people don't have domestic help and you find young women pregnant in college but they can't afford daycare. So the college sets up a daycare centre for the mothers so they are able to continue their studies," said Neeson.
Other universities located in Dubai International Academic City (DIAC), simply do not have the space to set up facilities for student mothers.
"We don't have enough space to provide anything for student mothers, the place is too small," said Denis Ravizza, associate dean of French Fashion University Esmod Dubai (ESMOD). "I am also not aware of facilities anywhere in DIAC, which could be a good idea because there are lots of mothers here," he added. However, institutions do offer limited help within their capacity.
Wid Rehaimi is a full-time bachelor's fashion student at ESMOD and gave birth nearly two months ago. The Saudi national travelled home for delivery, but given that it was in the middle of term, she was still required to submit work.
She said ESMOD offered her flexibility with deadlines and has even extended an offer to tutor her privately for the classes she missed.
"They can see that I am willing to do my best and when they see a student is trying, they give them a chance to succeed," said Rehaimi.
The 24-year-old already has a four-year-old daughter and sometimes struggles with university and motherhood. "To be honest I have thought about quitting about a hundred times, especially when I gave birth and had deadlines," she said.
Following suit
However, funnily enough it is her children that keep her going. "I want my children to be proud of me for what I studied and nurture their inner strength. I want them to know their mother was a hard worker and not a quitter," added Rehaimi.
A federal education body in Dubai has also seen a need to accommodate staff and student parents. It recently implemented a 40-day pilot programme for staff members in its large customer service departments. The programme allowed staff members to choose flexible morning and afternoon shifts. Staff also had an option of working four-day weeks in 12-hour shifts. The flexi-options remained in compliance with the 40-hour-a-week labour law, but sought to accommodate working parents.
Dubai Women's College (DWC) has also addressed a rising need to accommodate student mothers.
With a fair amount of student mothers enrolled at the college, DWC already has a midwife on campus, provided by the Dubai Health Authority. Like UOWD, it also provides a private place for nursing mothers to breastfeed and pump their breast milk. However, taking it one step further, the college has plans to open a crèche (daycare centre) for student mothers.
"It is something we are working towards," said Mary Lackie, DWC student affairs adviser. "This [accommodating mothers] is something which has happened gradually as the need arose," she added.
Have your say:
Are you struggling to balance the responsibilities of motherhood and work/study? Does your institution cater to your needs? Tell us about your experience by emailing us at education@gulfnews.com.
