The program accredited HR professionals and psychologists to apply acclaimed

MBTI principles at workplace or at home

Dubai, September 19, 2007: Twenty-two HR professionals took part in the UAE's first ever accreditation course in Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI), a universally recognised assessment tool to analyse personality type, which was offered at the University of Wollongong in Dubai (UOWD) recently.

The aim of this program was to accredit HR professionals and psychologists in utilizing MBTI at workplace, at home, or with friends. Dr. Lien Els - Associate Professor Human Resources, UOWD, coordinated the event.

The MBTI has a long history with more studies done and more extensive revisions than any other personality assessment tool. The Step I assessment identifies a person's whole type made up of four basic type preferences. The Step II assessment provides a more richly textured picture of type and behaviour using 20 additional facets.

Dr. Cedwyn Fernandes, Chair of College of Graduate Studies at UOWD, said, "The event, first of its kind in the UAE, was a tremendous success for the University. In order to ensure ongoing accreditation, UOWD in collaboration with Innovate, an HR solutions provider, plans to offer the MBTI as a co-curricular program to HR students and industry professionals."

Participants in the program were positive it would help them select the right candidates for the right job and customize their training needs. "Attending the first MBTI certification course in the Middle East had a great impact on my HR knowledge and ability to perform my best in my current career," said Shatha Saif Nasser, HR Manager, Mashreq Bank.

"The MBTI provided me with in-depth understanding of different personalities and how this effective tool can be used in team building, leadership development and coaching," commented Haidar A Ali, Corporate Manager, Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority.

"The four-day MBTI workshop gave me several new insights. It was like getting a new pair of glasses that allowed me to look at myself and other people from a new perspective. I will definitely implement what I have learnt," remarked Sue Yue, a student of Human Resource Management.

Dr. Linda Kirby, a dynamic presenter from Denver, Colorado, who demonstrated tangible ways to apply the MBTI results, said: "On-going change is an integral part of working in the 21st century. To survive and be effective in the new economic and political environment, individuals must deal with the day-by-day disruptions and, at the same time, with fundamental changes in the relationship between people and work."

The MBTI assessment is rated as the best known personality tool available today. After more than 50 years, the MBTI instrument continues to be the most trusted and widely used assessment in the world for understanding individual differences and uncovering new ways to work and interact with others. More than 2 million assessments are administered to individuals annually - including employees of most Fortune 500 companies. The MBTI instrument is also available in 21 languages.

The next MBTI course is scheduled to be held at UOWD in 2008. Those interested in registering for the course could contact Dr. Lien Els (lienels@uowdubai.ac.ae), co-ordinator for Human Resource Management at UOWD.

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About University of Wollongong Dubai
Established in 1993, UOWD was the first Australian university in Dubai to be licensed by the UAE Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research. Located at Knowledge Village, it boasts 2500 students from 80 different nationalities. It is part of one of Australia's best performing research institutions, University of Wollongong Australia (UOW) which is recognised as one of the top Australian universities for excellence in teaching performance.

PR Contacts:
Anthony D'Silva,
Communicate Gulf
(anthony@communicategulf.com)
Tel. +971 50 4571624.

Mohammad Meraj,
Marketing Manager
UAE, University of Wollongong in Dubai,
(mohammadmeraj@uowdubai.ac.ae)
Tel: +9714 3672425

© Press Release 2007