Twenty UAE national students from public high schools are being offered scholarships to enter one of three top universities in the country. The Bidaya education and leadership programme is making it possible for them.

Bidaya — Arabic for ‘beginning,' – was established in April 2007 by Zabeel Investments and Nakheel under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai.

It sent 20 students last year to three universities: the American University of Sharjah (AUS), the American University in Dubai (AUD) and the University of Sharjah (UoS). This year, the selection process has started to send another 20 for undergraduate studies to these universities.

Road Show 2008

To promote Bidaya, roadshows are currently underway around the country. Bidaya representatives have visited Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah, Umm Al Quwain, Ajman, Khor Fakkan, Fujairah and Dubai. The road-show will now be taken to Abu Dhabi.

"We want the best quality of students. Face-to-face interviews are the best way to pick those students. We get to know them personally and they get to know us as well," said Ameenah Taher, executive director of Corporate Communications, Zabeel Investments, and Bidaya founder.

"We received 450 applications last year; 85 of them were eligible. We ended up selecting 20," Ameenah said.

Past experience has shown that students appreciate roadshows. "I applied after hearing about the scholarship during the roadshow. I sat for interviews and later received a confirmation of acceptance," Abdullah Al Naqbi told Notes. "It's very difficult to be chosen from a pool of 500 students. I feel very lucky," he added.

Al Naqbi is an aspiring pediatrician who is studying medicine in the University of Sharjah.

Asma Abdul Rahman Saqr, an engineering student at the University of Sharjah and member of Bidaya, felt the same. "I feel lucky and special to have been chosen for this programme," she said.

The students chosen for the programme last year are taking part in the roadshows to speak to applicants about study and career opportunities and answer their questions.

Founding the programme

Ameenah talked about the purpose behind founding the programme and the direction it is taking one year after its establishment.

"We want each person in the programme to have a new beginning; an opportunity to learn and grow in a field of their choice and start university study with support and guidance provided by a team of educated professionals," she said.
Thirteen girls and seven boys received the scholarships last year.

Ameenah explained why AUD, AUS and UoS were chosen. "We wanted to give the students a local experience, while at the same time providing them with leadership skills here, and be able to monitor them." After graduation, the students can go abroad for further studies and career opportunities.

From public to private
According to Ameenah, the idea for Bidaya came from a desire to help young people to get the best possible start in their adult lives.

"When we look at education systems in the UAE, we find a gap between government schools and universities. We try to bridge this gap and also introduce students to the professional world. We take young (high school) students, which is unique," she said.

Benefits of Bidaya

Bidaya provides students with scholarships, guidance for their future careers and training in certain skills.

Last January, the 20 chosen students travelled to Turkey for a training course on leadership. The girls were accompanied by their husbands, brothers or fathers.
Bidaya also organised a seminar on lateral thinking by well-known Maltese psychologist and physician Dr Edward de Bono.

Al Naqbi was among the students who travelled to Turkey for the leadership programme. He said that the workshop was beneficial. "I'm using the things that I learned in the workshop in my everyday life. I learned to set my goals, organise and plan my time," he said.

In addition, students are offered monthly pocket money, a personal bank account, books, a laptop and a personal email ID. A qualified mentor guides them throughout their membership in the programme.

For Asma Abdul Rahman Saqr, mentoring and moral support is the most important factor.
She said: "What's special about Bidaya is that the programme helped me strengthen my personality through the many workshops that we attended. They each dealt with one aspect or skill that impacted my personality."

Her future plans include creating her own computer programme for children. "I want to help children discover and develop their own skills. Children are the pillars of society and we must give them extra care; so the kind of games they play is very important," Asma said.

The future of Bidaya
Bidaya hopes to expand the number of student beneficiaries to more than 20 in the coming years. "It is the quality and not the quantity that the programme focuses on," Ameenah said. "We want Bidaya to grow beyond the UAE's borders and to benefit youth of many nationalities."

Who can apply and where?
Students interested in Bidaya may apply on www.bidaya.ae.
The deadline is April 30.

Applicants must be:
UAE nationals;
High school graduates between 17 and 18;
Grade 10 or 11 students with an average of 90 per cent or above;
Students at a public school

Application requirements

In addition to meeting the above eligibility criteria, students need to submit:

A letter of endorsement from their school, either from a teacher or a school principal;

A 200-word essay on why they feel they should be part of the Bidaya programme, including who inspires them and why.