23 April 2015
Muscat - Oman's leading exhibition for higher education-GHEDEX & the Omanisation Career Fair (OCF) ended on 22nd April 2015 with a total of over 25,000 visitors in attendance for 3 days, the highest number ever recorded for both events. Over 200 top-notch universities and colleges from over 23 countries participated at GHEDEX with 170 educational bodies and institutions accounting for international participation and 30 for local participation, while 50 leading companies from across the spectrum of Oman's private and public sectors exhibited at OCF. Visitors share their positive experiences of both GHEDEX & OCF, organised by OITE Trade Fairs.

Visitors look to GHEDEX as an opportunistic platform for higher education

Mr. Preshob V, Counselor ISM has been visiting GHEDEX every year and finds it very useful for students "It is for this reason that we organized the trip for our students this year as well. On the 21stApril we brought over 250 students from the 12th Std. Commerce & Humanities stream and on 22nd April we brought over 250 students from the 12thStd Science stream. Students at GHEDEX get the opportunity to see universities from all over the world at a single venue, so this is a very good opportunity for them"

Ms. Romea Shina, Physics teacher, ISM came to see what colleges and universities are offering at GHEDEX. "We think GHEDEX is very helpful for students. I was looking for a suitable course for my daughter as well, in the medical field. GHEDEX is a good platform for making students aware about higher education options especially from an international perspective"

Ms. Anna Girish was at GHEDEX looking out for options in accounting & finance for her daughter who is studying in 12th Std. "We saw a lot of good colleges and universities here and were looking at all options like India, USA, UK etc. plus we are comparing the cost based on which we will decide which option is worth it"

Mr. Masood Ahmed was looking out for Computer Engineering course options and viable placements for his son who is studying in Oman "Visiting GHEDEX gives you so many choices; it is like a hypermarket where you can shop for higher education options. It gave me a chance to explore many countries exhibiting here. Students are lucky because they get to see what courses they can take up for their future at an early stage, which is needed especially now since competition is high. I wish them all the best"

Ms. Shahneellah Adnan from Pakistan is an expat who came to Oman from Pakistan "I was about to start my PhD in Pakistan but my husband shifted to Muscat, so I felt GHEDEX  would give me an opportunity to find a relevant institution to complete my PhD and get a proper supervisor from Oman"

Visitors feel OCF is a lucrative avenue for locating job opportunities

Ms. Shaima Mohammed Shakeel is currently studying for her Masters at SQU "I'm about to graduate so I thought of coming to OCF to look for jobs and get an overall impression of what kind of employment is available in the market. I'm impressed with the fact that companies were taking CVs and explaining about their companies, I even got in touch with companies I had not come across before and have applied to many of them, so let's see what happens!"

Mr. Reda Attia, Training Manager, Assafwah Schools came to OCF to look out for prospective job options for his students "I think OCF has many opportunities for Omanis from leading companies like Saud Bahwan, Khimji Ramdas etc. The MoM and private companies give many facilities to aid Omanis in searching for lucrative job opportunities and OCF is one such platform, where if Omanis are looking for employment all they have to do is come here and they will find options based on their job preference"

Ms. Fatima Zohra Ounair from Al Takween spoke about OCF as a lucrative networking platform"OCF is a good experience for us to talk about our projects and work as well as get in touch with different companies especially the new ones to exchange our experiences in the field"

Ms. Maha Usaif who has been staying in Oman for the past 7 years, is from Tunisia and is currently on the lookout for a prospective job opportunity which brought her to OCF. "Finding a job in Oman is a little difficult at the moment so a lucrative platform like OCF is helpful since it gave me an idea of what to expect as well as the chance to submit my CV to prospective companies"

GHEDEX 2015 was supported by Austrade, British Council, UK Trade & Investment, Embassy of the United States-Muscat, EducationUSA, AMIDEAST, Al Ahlam Training Services and Higher Education Services and Global Vision for Academic Services. Sponsors for GHEDEX included Dhofar University, Enterprise Ireland, Majan College, Sohar University, Sultan Qaboos University and Higher College of Technology as Lead Sponsors ; Military Technology College as Platinum Sponsor ; Waljat College of Applied Sciences, International College of Engineering and Management, and Caledonian College of Engineering  as Gold Sponsors ; DAAD, Vyas Institutes of Higher Education-Jodhpur, Ezone, University of South Carolina, Al Ghurair University and University of Michigan-Flint as Silver Sponsors ; University of Idaho as Floorplan Sponsor ; Education Malaysia as Visitor Bag Sponsor and MG-Group as Raffle Draw Sponsor. OCF 2015 was sponsored by Oman Air, Orpic, Saud Bahwan Group and Polyglot Group as Lead Sponsors; Oman Arab bank as Gold Sponsor, MHD LLC, Ooredoo, TeO and STOMO as Silver Sponsors, and MG-Group as Raffle Draw Sponsor.

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© Press Release 2015