Young Emiratis said they believe nothing is impossible after being selected for lessons at one of the world's most prestigious engineering colleges.
A small group of teenagers with outstanding academic scores were chosen by the UAE's education authority to attend the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi last month.
The institute will open its first overseas college in the UAE next year and has organised summer maths and science programmes and university admission test preparation in Abu Dhabi for select Emirati pupils.
Visiting lecturers from India are now teaching a group of close to 100 Emiratis advanced maths and preparing them for college admissions to top global universities, with practical laboratory sessions held at Zayed University in Abu Dhabi this month.
IIT-Delhi Abu Dhabi presents a big opportunity for students - instead of importing technology they can create it themselves
Tanmay Bunkar,
chief executive of BotLab Dynamics, a IIT-Delhi start-up
Opening in September next year, the IIT-Delhi Abu Dhabi campus aims to attract the best young minds in technology and engineering.
During a recent visit of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the UAE, a formal agreement was signed between the Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (Adek), Sunjay Sudhir, India’s ambassador to the UAE, and IIT Delhi.
Start with a small idea
Fatima Al Jneibi was among the pupils chosen by Adek to travel to the IIT Delhi campus for a 10-day engineering programme and is also taking part in the month-long learning sessions in Abu Dhabi.
The 17-year-old, who plans to apply to US universities, will now add IIT-Delhi Abu Dhabi to her list.
“I have always regarded Harvard as a dream college and to be taught by IIT professors who have taught at Harvard and MIT is amazing to me,” the Grade 12 pupil told The National.
“I’m learning a lot. I have faith in myself but I feel they made me believe in myself a lot more.
“They kept telling us 'nothing is impossible’ and that we can start with a simple idea and move on from there.”
The UAE pupils met IIT alumni and students who have launched successful technology start-ups.
“It was truly inspiring,” Ms Al Jneibi said.
“We met students and professors who have set up multiple projects.
“They all said the same thing – they started with solving a little problem and developed a solution.
“I learnt a solution does not have to be a big one.
“As long as you have the idea, you can propose it to someone who could support you to do more.
“I really loved how they inspired us to be like them and even better than them.”
Advanced maths
The three-week summer programme in Abu Dhabi focuses on boosting the skills of Emirati pupils in Stem subjects – science, technology, engineering and maths.
The high school pupils required a high GPA or more than an 80 per cent score in science and maths to qualify.
“It’s a tough programme but really interesting,” said Ms Al Jneibi, who plans to major in environmental sciences engineering and sustainable energy.
“This is more advanced than our studies in school.
“We are going deeper into maths with this programme.”
The outreach programme covers advanced calculus, probability theory, robotics, drone engineering and design with practical experiments.
Drone tech
There are 23 IITs in India and the institutes are famous for a rigorous education and research programme that has produced well-known alumni such as Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive.
Regarded as the MIT and Harvard of India, the acceptance rate is only 1.7 per cent – with only 16,600 places available and more than 900,000 students vying to get admission.
Tanmay Bunkar, chief executive and founder of BotLab Dynamics, a drone technology start-up from IIT-Delhi, held workshops, where teenagers could examine drones and better understand the technology.
“We are trying to familiarise students with drone technology,” Mr Bunkar said.
“It’s great to see a majority of girls in the sessions, where we talk about putting a drone together, operating and flying it.”
The company has a focus on swarm technology, which enables many drones to fly autonomously and simultaneously.
Ms Al Jneibi was among pupils who watched a drone display on the IIT Delhi campus, featuring more than 250 flying in formation to depict a girl in an abaya and the flags of the UAE and India.
IIT-Delhi graduate Mr Bunkar believes the new UAE campus will have significant long-term benefit.
“Once you establish an IIT in Abu Dhabi and train students here, they will come up with solutions suited for unique local needs,” he said.
“A lot of technology used in the UAE is not built here. This presents a big opportunity for students – instead of importing they can create it themselves.
“This will be a unique centre for education that will also encourage students to come up with ideas.”
The IIT-Delhi Abu Dhabi will offer bachelor’s, master’s and PhD degrees and operate research centres related to sustainable energy, climate studies, computing and data sciences.
Courses will cover energy and stainability, artificial intelligence, computer science, engineering, mathematics, sciences and humanities.
UK’s AI plan
- AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
- £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
- £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
- £250m to train new AI models
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
A cheaper choice
Vanuatu: $130,000
Why on earth pick Vanuatu? Easy. The South Pacific country has no income tax, wealth tax, capital gains or inheritance tax. And in 2015, when it was hit by Cyclone Pam, it signed an agreement with the EU that gave it some serious passport power.
Cost: A minimum investment of $130,000 for a family of up to four, plus $25,000 in fees.
Criteria: Applicants must have a minimum net worth of $250,000. The process take six to eight weeks, after which the investor must travel to Vanuatu or Hong Kong to take the oath of allegiance. Citizenship and passport are normally provided on the same day.
Benefits: No tax, no restrictions on dual citizenship, no requirement to visit or reside to retain a passport. Visa-free access to 129 countries.
How will Gen Alpha invest?
Mark Chahwan, co-founder and chief executive of robo-advisory firm Sarwa, forecasts that Generation Alpha (born between 2010 and 2024) will start investing in their teenage years and therefore benefit from compound interest.
“Technology and education should be the main drivers to make this happen, whether it’s investing in a few clicks or their schools/parents stepping up their personal finance education skills,” he adds.
Mr Chahwan says younger generations have a higher capacity to take on risk, but for some their appetite can be more cautious because they are investing for the first time. “Schools still do not teach personal finance and stock market investing, so a lot of the learning journey can feel daunting and intimidating,” he says.
He advises millennials to not always start with an aggressive portfolio even if they can afford to take risks. “We always advise to work your way up to your risk capacity, that way you experience volatility and get used to it. Given the higher risk capacity for the younger generations, stocks are a favourite,” says Mr Chahwan.
Highlighting the role technology has played in encouraging millennials and Gen Z to invest, he says: “They were often excluded, but with lower account minimums ... a customer with $1,000 [Dh3,672] in their account has their money working for them just as hard as the portfolio of a high get-worth individual.”
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
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Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
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WandaVision
Starring: Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany
Directed by: Matt Shakman
Rating: Four stars
Tips to keep your car cool
- Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
- Park in shaded or covered areas
- Add tint to windows
- Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
- Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
- Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
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