As the inaugural class nears the end of their junior year and graduation plans are beginning to form, students of all years begin looking towards their careers post-NYUAD. While the future may seem far, some students are already considering staying in Abu Dhabi following their graduation as a way to give back to the city that has made their college education at NYUAD possible.

Sophomore Noha Alfergani, a computer engineering student, was inspired after working closely with a professor and is looking forward to finding ways to apply her computer coding skills to enhance society in Abu Dhabi as well as her home country, Libya.

She is currently working with her professor, Dr. Mohamad Eid, on developing a wheelchair that is accessible to people of even the most immobile disabilities. The project will continue into the summer as an academic internship. Currently, she is assisting Dr. Eid in the developments of a wheelchair that is operated by the brainwaves of the person sitting in the chair. The chair would be optimal for patients who have suffered from injuries that have left them paralyzed.

“He’s actually the one who made me want to do this stuff,” Alfergani said. “This idea of combining what I like to do, in terms of computers, and helping people just got me so [interested in] what we are doing right now.”

“Most of us did not expect to end up where we are,” Alfergani continued. “Most of us were just going to go to the colleges back at home and just hope for the best. But, this came along, and no one told us that we need to give back. But, I feel like it is part of my duty after being here.”

Alfergani’s classmate and close friend, sophomore Nahal Mustafa is also considering staying in Abu Dhabi post-graduation. Mustafa is originally from Pakistan.

“It feels like a safe option,” Mustafa said. “It’s close to home, and over the last two years I have grown used to the city. Maybe if I move to a new place, I will adapt to that too with time. But, as of now, I feel like three years is just not enough time to spend here.”

Mustafa also attributes her friends’ decisions to stay in Abu Dhabi as a factor to her own consideration, as well as her family’s experience moving to the Middle East for work. She attributes the better working conditions and security of the UAE to their decision to work abroad.

“If [the] situation does not change back home, I can see myself working here indefinitely,” Mustafa said.

In terms of where she would work within the UAE, Mustafa says she would prefer to work in Abu Dhabi due to the educational opportunities the city has provided her with.

“I do feel a degree of responsibility to give back to Abu Dhabi,” she said. “And although that is not entirely the reason for me to stay here, it does have quite an impact on my decision.”

Junior Leah Reynolds expressed interested in not only staying within the city of Abu Dhabi, but also exploring the opportunities available in the other emirates. As a Social Research and Public Policy major with a concentration in Arab Crossroads, she is interested in working with The Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi Foundation for Policy Research in Ras Al Khaimah.

“Since Candidate Weekend I've been impressed by the energy and excitement that people in the city seem to have for innovation and investing in the future,” Reynolds explained. “And now that I have friends, a church and a sense of community; I'm not in a hurry to leave.”

Students, especially the inaugural juniors of NYUAD, have developed a level of comfort within the Abu Dhabi community, prompting many to consider staying to develop their careers nearby the university.

Junior Besiki Turazashvili shares the same sentiment regarding his comfort working in the Emirates.

“After interning in several companies in the UAE and outside of it, I realized how much more comfortable I felt working in big international corporations in Abu Dhabi,” he said. “I feel very close to the Middle Eastern culture and mentality after these three years of living in the UAE. And it is one of the major reasons I [have] decided to stay in Abu Dhabi after graduation.”

As a double major in economics and film and new media, Turazashvili aspires to work in the marketing and consulting industries. He plans to work within the UAE for at least the first six years of his career, and shares the same sense of duty to give back, as already expressed by other students.

NYUAD’s Career Development Center has been anticipating such a trend among students’ post-graduation plans since the establishment of the university. As a result, the CDC has created networks for students and Abu Dhabi-based organizations interested in hiring university graduates.

“We have been working to develop relationships with local organizations to provide a pathway for employment for NYUAD graduates since before our first students arrived,” CDC Director Hazel Raja explained. “We are extremely pleased that so many students have expressed interest in remaining in the UAE post-graduation. Aside from our role in developing contacts and opportunities, we aim to equip students with the relevant tools — knowledge, skills and experience — that will assist them in their internship and job search in the UAE.”

The CDC provides resources like advising consultations, workshops and networking opportunities with recruiters from local organizations to prepare students for their future careers.

Additionally, by creating an internship program for students with local organizations, the CDC is aiming to ease the transition for NYUAD graduates to enter the Abu Dhabi workforce.

“We have been working to develop strong relationships with potential employers,” Raja said, “by establishing internships with organizations which allow our students the chance to highlight what sort of impact they – and their classmates – can make post-graduation.”

But for some students, staying in Abu Dhabi is not a realistic option for their future plans, especially when considering graduate school.

“I'd like to do research in computer science and the UAE does not have a strong community for research in that area yet,” junior Juan Felipe Beltrán said, “or at least not one that has been very visible to me. There is definitely a lot of work being done in engineering, but I'm looking to do research in computer interaction and computation in the natural sciences at the moment, both of which are harder to find here.”

While his current plan includes attending graduate school immediately after graduating from NYUAD, Beltrán says he is not opposed to staying.

“I haven't exactly gotten job offers yet in the UAE, which is the only thing that would make me consider waiting for graduate school,” he said.

For sophomore Hongjun Byun, his sights are set on attending an American law school after graduating from NYUAD.

“I want to go to a graduate school right after graduation,” Byun said. “Although I am very much open to the option of working in Abu Dhabi or elsewhere, but as of now, I am more attracted to studying whatever I find necessary to deepen my knoweldge.”

While both Byun and Beltrán attribute graduate school plans to their reasons for leaving the UAE post-graduation, they also share a sense of openness to staying for work opportunities.

Ultimately, a trend among students appears to be a desire to remain in the Emirates due to a developed sense of security, comfort and dedication to give back to the community.