AL AIN // Ninety per cent of newly enrolled female students at UAE University (UAEU) turned up for their placement exams this week, againsth only 50 per cent of the men. The exams in English, maths, Arabic and IT must be completed by all new students before classes start on Sunday. Those students who miss the exams but turn up for class anyway will be streamed at a lower level and will need to take further exams at the end of the first semester before progressing.
Dr Maryam Salem al Marashad, the dean of students at UAEU, said men tended to reject places at university in favour of jobs at Government companies such as Etisalat, or with the army or police. "Men apply but they prefer to work rather than study ... women are more academically interested and believe in education and with that, their opportunities are better," she said. This year sees the highest proportion of female students at UAEU yet, with 2,450 women making up 70 per cent of the student body. It is a number that has been increasing year-on-year and the trend can be seen across all federal institutions.
"In the last 10 years, the students have had more options to specialise which has made this [university] a very popular choice," said Dr al Marashad. "Also, many of their parents graduated from here, which gives them a connection to the institution. "Over the last five years, our graduates have easily entered the workplace." The latest batch of students were addressed yesterday by female alumni as part of orientation week.
One of those women was Kholoud al Dhaheri, the UAE's first female judge and the GCC's second. "Always follow your goals, stand up for your rights and don't let anybody stand in your way," she told the students. "Be open to trying new things. Don't be afraid. Just be yourself. There is something special in all of us. Focus on your goals in life." Mariam Harib al Yousuf, the executive director of the policies and regulations division at Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority, said she owed her success to the opportunities she was offered at UAEU, the country's oldest federal institution and the first to offer Masters and PhD programmes.
She completed undergraduate and post-graduate degrees at UAEU before heading to England to earn her PhD in the chemistry of medicinal plants. "I couldn't have had that opportunity to study abroad if it hadn't been for getting my master's here," she said. "I was in the first group of students to do a master's degree here and look, now there are PhDs. "There weren't the same opportunities to study abroad when I was at university like there are now, but I will send my children here, in spite of there being so many more universities in the country than when I was at school."
Dr Najwa al Hosani, the assistant professor at the department of curriculum and instruction in the faculty of education at UAEU, told the students she was the first female in her family to go to university. "I wanted to show them why women should study. I used to look at the students travelling on the UAEU bus when I was at school, just wondering when I'd finally be one of those students, when it was my turn."
Ali Salem al Dhaheri, a former student of the UAEU who lives in Al Ain, came to the orientation session with his daughter, 17-year-old Rahma. She is his fifth daughter to attend the university, following in her sisters' footsteps to study medicine. "This university acknowledges women," said Mr al Dhaheri. "Sheikh Zayed has always given women the possibility to learn, to grow and get equal opportunities just like men."
Khadija al Murshedi, an 18-year-old first year student, said: "I was against joining a local university and would have preferred to travel abroad, but since coming to the orientation week, I'm sure I've made the right decision." Zayed University and Higher Colleges of Technology are still tabulating their attendance figures. @Email:mswan@thenational.ae
The%20specs
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RESULTS
Tottenham 1
Jan Vertonghen 13'
Norwich 1
Josip Drmic 78'
2-3 on penalties
Shooting Ghosts: A U.S. Marine, a Combat Photographer, and Their Journey Back from War by Thomas J. Brennan and Finbarr O’Reilly
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
NINE WINLESS GAMES
Arsenal 2-2 Crystal Palace (Oct 27, PL)
Liverpool 5-5 Arsenal (Oct 30, EFL)
Arsenal 1-1 Wolves (Nov 02, PL)
Vitoria Guimaraes 1-1 Arsenal (Nov 6, Europa)
Leicester 2-0 Arsenal (Nov 9, PL)
Arsenal 2-2 Southampton (Nov 23, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Eintracht Frankfurt (Nov 28, Europa)
Norwich 2-2 Arsenal (Dec 01, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Brighton (Dec 05, PL)
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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
Richard Jewell
Director: Clint Eastwood
Stars: Paul Walter Hauser, Sam Rockwell, Brandon Stanley
Two-and-a-half out of five stars
Panipat
Director Ashutosh Gowariker
Produced Ashutosh Gowariker, Rohit Shelatkar, Reliance Entertainment
Cast Arjun Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt, Kriti Sanon, Mohnish Behl, Padmini Kolhapure, Zeenat Aman
Rating 3 /5 stars
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
JOKE'S%20ON%20YOU
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Brief scores:
Juventus 3
Dybala 6', Bonucci 17', Ronaldo 63'
Frosinone 0
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
More from Aya Iskandarani
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
City's slump
L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
L - Tottenham, 2-1
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
RESULTS
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
HAJJAN
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
