Reflection on meeting

Venue: research & innovation centre

Date: Sunday 18th March

Present:

Abdulqadar, H00235057, Chairman

Nabil, H00159003, Secretary

Ahmed Salah, H00138689, Participant

Abdulqadar opened the meeting in an appropriate manner & introduced the items on the agenda clearly. He directed the meeting successfully from 1 item to the next.

The problem under discussion was Emiratisation.

The first item to be discussed was the lack of information from the private sector for students while they are studying. Nabil: HCT has many graduates and they mostly go to government jobs because they don't know about the private sector.

The next issue was the fact that government alone cannot provide jobs for all nationals. Ahmed: we need a better balance between government & the private sector. Students should be encouraged to get work experience in the private sector. Nabil: at present, work experience is always in the government sector. Ahmed: students are afraid of the risks involved in working in the private sector. Nabil: we need theory classes re. the top 5 government & top 5 privatre companies. Even if most students opt for government jobs, some will opt for private & hopefully this number will grow. Ahmed: we need a special programme for students before they graduate. Nabil: the biggest problem is lack of info: the students need clarity.

Hedley asked why it was important to direct students to the private sector. He was told that government cannot provide jobs for all graduates. Those not getting government jobs either work for semi- government institutions, like Nabil, or remain idle until a government post, for which they are not necessarily qualified, turns up.

Recommendations:

1. Special programme for students before they graduate.
2. More clear inf0 re. private sector.
3. Work placement in private sector as well as government, so that students can decide, government or private.
4. Need for people to be qualified to do specific jobs.
5. It would be good for more private companies to follow HSBC's lead in training Emiratis, sending them abroad for training & work experience, and, finally, employing them in full-time positions.

All 3 students contributed to the meeting; it was well-directed; the secretary made notes; views were expressed clearly & politely;the discussion flowed freely and was always interesting.