On the evening of Tuesday Oct. 30, StartAD Central in the NYU Abu Dhabi Arts and Humanities Building was filled with budding entrepreneurs ready to learn and explore ideas at StartAD’s Demo Day. The event was an interactive startup 101 workshop designed to provide those attending with tools and frameworks to promote creative thinking and methods to validate startup ideas.

StartAD, a platform that supports innovation and entrepreneurship in the UAE, also provided students with the methods and guidance it gives to professional startups at any stage of their development. Students were able to interact with members of StartAD, with whom they could discuss and work on their startup plans.

“The best part is that they get a chance to show what they’re doing and then hear feedback,” said Nadine Endija Lāže, Class of 2019. “What I think is the most interesting part is to see how people respond to critique and perhaps that’s the first time they’ve been critiqued so hard. While nobody enjoys it, I think that’s one of those things that you really need from professionals in the field … Their everyday job is to critique that [process], so then the teams can get a response.”

On the night of Thursday Nov. 1 the East Plaza was transformed into a stage and platform for NYUAD’s many artists to share their music and battle it out for the title of Best Artist at the annual Battle of the Bands. The plaza was filled to the brim with an audience waiting for faculty, staff and students to showcase their talents.

The event boasted a total of 13 artists whose music ranged from jazz to rock, pop to rap and more. Various refreshments were on offer for the audience including ice cream, popcorn and cotton candy. Eliza Mic, Class of 2021, one of the lead singers of the band 1 AM believed that the event was more lively than last year.

“The crowd was just amazing. They were going crazy, they were dancing with us, they were singing with us, they even got the lyrics,” said Mic.

Mic also pointed out the passion and talent exhibited by new members who joined the band this semester.

“They obviously have amazing skills and have been pursuing this and working on their musical skills for a long time. You can see their passion and it’s very contagious.“

To celebrate this year’s Halloween, the Student Government Programming Board hosted a Halloween Ball on Oct. 31. The Marketplace was turned into a Halloween-themed space with spider webs, ghost posters and various other decorations.

The organizers of the event gave out KFC to students who showed up dressed in costumes as a reward for showing their Halloween spirit. Other refreshments were also offered, including popcorn, cotton candy, mocktails and Halloween-themed cupcakes.

“I enjoyed it a lot,” said Bhrigu Bhatra, Class of 2021. “It was fun and crowded, the decorations were on point. Huge thank you to the Programming Board for making it a lot of fun. A lot of people dressed up, everyone was very enthusiastic and it was fun seeing what people come up with.”

The second Open Mic Night of the Fall 2018 semester was held on Nov. 2 in the East Dining Hall. The event featured an array of performances from NYUAD students and pizza for the audience.

The majority of students performed covers of popular songs, such as All Too Well by Taylor Swift, Lucky by Jason Mraz, This Town by Niall Horan and more. Some students played instruments along with their performances as well.

Nela Noll, Class of 2019, enjoyed the various acts of the night.

“There was a lot of talent that I think was unknown within the NYUAD community,” said Noll. “[The atmosphere was] I think very relaxed. There were a lot of beanbags, people were sort of lounging. It was a Friday so naturally everyone wanted to hang out and it was a really nice environment.”