42's campus in Abu Dhabi. Photo: Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge
42's campus in Abu Dhabi. Photo: Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge
42's campus in Abu Dhabi. Photo: Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge
42's campus in Abu Dhabi. Photo: Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge

Free coding school in Abu Dhabi has 1,000 places available


Kelsey Warner
  • English
  • Arabic

Abu Dhabi's free, no-teacher and no-classroom coding school has opened admissions for its second cohort of students.

42 Abu Dhabi is offering a further 1,000 seats for aspiring coders after welcoming 225 students to its Mina Zayed campus in September.

Traditional classes and teachers have been dispensed with and the school — open to students 24 hours a day — relies on peer reviews, coding projects and internships.

A student who goes through the programme over three to five years is expected to emerge as a coder.

“Coding is no longer the future — it is the present. 42 Abu Dhabi’s peer-to-peer gamified methodology enables students to build a unique repertoire of soft and hard skills,” said Leo Filardi, chief executive of 42 Abu Dhabi.

He said “unprecedented demand” had led to the expansion of the Abu Dhabi campus, its first in the Middle East.

The UAE is focused on developing and attracting coding talent in its push to build a knowledge-based, technology-driven economy.

In July, the government signed a deal with a host of technology giants, including Google and Amazon, to train 100,000 young people in computer programming, and has opened 100,000 Golden visas — which deliver long-term residency to recipients — to entrepreneurs, owners of enterprises and start-ups specialising in coding.

42 opened its first campus in Paris in 2013 and to date has equipped more than 12,000 students around the world with digital and business skills. It has been endorsed by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey and Snapchat co-founder Evan Spiegel.

While no previous coding experience or academic qualifications are required to apply, candidates must be at least 18 years old and “display ambition, aptitude, commitment, proactivity, curiosity, creativity and possess an innate ability to adapt and collaborate,” according to the school.

Successful applicants are required to complete 42 Abu Dhabi’s preselection “Game” — an online assessment which evaluates cognitive capacity via logic and memory tests — and attend a virtual briefing on the school's methodology for teaching and learning.

Potential applicants for the next programme, which will begin in March, must submit applications before registration closes on January 4, 2022.

UAE jobs guide for digital roles 2021 - in pictures

Health Valley

Founded in 2002 and set up as a foundation in 2006, Health Valley has been an innovation in healthcare for more than 10 years in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
It serves as a place where companies, businesses, universities, healthcare providers and government agencies can collaborate, offering a platform where they can connect and work together on healthcare innovation.
Its partners work on technological innovation, new forms of diagnostics and other methods to make a difference in healthcare.
Its agency consists of eight people, four innovation managers and office managers, two communication advisers and one director. It gives innovation support to businesses and other parties in its network like a broker, connecting people with the right organisation to help them further

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tearful appearance

Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday. 

Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow. 

She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.

A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
UK-EU trade at a glance

EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years

Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products

Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries

Smoother border management with use of e-gates

Cutting red tape on import and export of food

The Bio

Name: Lynn Davison

Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi

Children: She has one son, Casey, 28

Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK

Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Favourite Author: CJ Sansom

Favourite holiday destination: Bali

Favourite food: A Sunday roast

MATCH INFO

Cricket World Cup League Two
Oman, UAE, Namibia
Al Amerat, Muscat
 
Results
Oman beat UAE by five wickets
UAE beat Namibia by eight runs
Namibia beat Oman by 52 runs
UAE beat Namibia by eight wickets
UAE v Oman - abandoned
Oman v Namibia - abandoned

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES

SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities

Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails

Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies

Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments

Russia's Muslim Heartlands

Dominic Rubin, Oxford

The biog

Alwyn Stephen says much of his success is a result of taking an educated chance on business decisions.

His advice to anyone starting out in business is to have no fear as life is about taking on challenges.

“If you have the ambition and dream of something, follow that dream, be positive, determined and set goals.

"Nothing and no-one can stop you from succeeding with the right work application, and a little bit of luck along the way.”

Mr Stephen sells his luxury fragrances at selected perfumeries around the UAE, including the House of Niche Boutique in Al Seef.

He relaxes by spending time with his family at home, and enjoying his wife’s India cooking. 

F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

If you go

The flights Etihad (www.etihad.com) and Spice Jet (www.spicejet.com) fly direct from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Pune respectively from Dh1,000 return including taxes. Pune airport is 90 minutes away by road. 

The hotels A stay at Atmantan Wellness Resort (www.atmantan.com) costs from Rs24,000 (Dh1,235) per night, including taxes, consultations, meals and a treatment package.
 

Retail gloom

Online grocer Ocado revealed retail sales fell 5.7 per cen in its first quarter as customers switched back to pre-pandemic shopping patterns.

It was a tough comparison from a year earlier, when the UK was in lockdown, but on a two-year basis its retail division, a joint venture with Marks&Spencer, rose 31.7 per cent over the quarter.

The group added that a 15 per cent drop in customer basket size offset an 11.6. per cent rise in the number of customer transactions.

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Second Test

In Dubai

Pakistan 418-5 (declared)
New Zealand 90 and 131-2 (follow on)

Day 3: New Zealand trail by 197 runs with 8 wickets remaining

Updated: December 15, 2021, 7:32 AM`