How Tawdheef changed one Emirati’s life

Tawdheef has brought together more than 100 exhibitors which collectively hold more than 6,000 current job vacancies for fresh Emirati graduates and professionals.

Mayad Khaled Al Jassim visited the Tawdheef recruitment fair one year ago and was chosen to fill one of a handful positions at TAQA (Abu Dhabi National Energy Company). “There are many benefits to recruitment fairs like this. There are many job choices here all in one place,” he says. Ravindranath K / The NationalShow less

ABU DHABI// Exactly a year ago, and fresh out of university, Mayad Khaled Al Jassim, with CV in hand, visited one of the biggest employment fairs for Emiratis.

The trip to the Tawdheef recruitment fair was one that changed his life, he said.

Out of thousands of applicants, the Emirati, who studied for a double degree in marketing and human resource management in Melbourne, Australia, was chosen to fill one of a handful of positions at Taqa, the Abu Dhabi National Energy Company.

The 23-year-old, from Fujairah, said: “I applied last year at the fair and was lucky to be one of five fresh graduates.

“I applied at Tawdheef and I am very glad I am working here. It is an amazing experience that Taqa is giving me this opportunity to work locally and internationally and I am really grateful.”

It is an experience, he feels, that may not have been possible without Tawdheef, the Emirati careers and recruitment organisation.

“There are many benefits to recruitment fairs like this,” he said. “There are many job choices here all in one place.”

No matter the background or skill, there is something on offer, said Mr Al Jassim, whose top two priorities when looking for employment were a diverse workplace and a company with a successful international presence.

After a whirlwind year, Mr Al Jassim, a management graduate at the company, is now about to go on an assignment overseas on an oil platform in the North Sea.

“I went up to one of the oil and gas directors and said I would like to experience working offshore,” he said.

“It started as a joke actually, then a couple of weeks later he came up to me and said ‘do you know how to swim and are you scared of heights?’. He said ‘you are going to Aberdeen and you are going to work offshore’. I was surprised and I was so amazed.

“I see myself in a really good position for the next few years,” he said.

Thousands of Emirati job seekers have visited the halls of the UAE’s leading recruitment show at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre with one common goal – to find good career prospects.

Mohammed Al Qaisi, a 22-year-old UAE national and recent graduate, was one of those who visited Tawdheef to meet government, semi-government and private institutions.

“There are so many exciting career opportunities – whether they are in the public or private sector. Most of the exhibitors have been very informative explaining their openings to me,” he said.

Tawdheef has brought together more than 100 exhibitors who collectively hold more than 6,000 job vacancies for fresh Emirati graduates and professionals. The fair concludes on Wednesday.