Abu Dhabi University students to participate in Stanford University Innovation Fellows Program

Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi University (ADU), the largest private university in the UAE, announced that eight of its students have been accepted to participate in the University Innovation Fellows program by Stanford University’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design (d.school).

Through the program, the ADU students will become a part of an innovation thought leaders’ community of over 1000 students from 185 higher education institutions in 20 countries. The program is designed to connect innovators from all over the world to advocate disruptive innovations and empower students to become agents of change at their own educational institutions. The highly competitive program necessitates that eligible candidates hold a high GPA and undergo a rigorous application process. The students are being sponsored by the ADU innovation center, as part of its ongoing efforts to embed innovation in the fabric of education for the future generations.

The innovation fellows, who are currently enrolled at ADU completing undergraduate degrees across a variety of disciplines, were accepted as part of two teams which will be led by two ADU’s faculty mentors. The first team is comprised of Architecture students Ayesha Zahid and Basant Helal, Business Management major Betty Lucille Hillebrand as well as Aviation major Reyal Yousif Mohammed Osman. The second team includes BBA students Saleha Muhammad, Eman Ali, Haleema Mulla and Sarah Eladly.

Dr Petra Turkama, Director of Innovation at ADU, said: “We are incredibly proud of our students for being accepted into this highly demanding and prestigious program, which we believe will help drive a spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship within the student and faculty communities here at ADU. This program will give our students an invaluable opportunity to learn from some of the brightest minds in academia, while also having access to a shared platform with hundreds of like-minded peers from across the world. We believe collaboration and the exchange of ideas are the soil and water that can sow the seeds of creativity, and have no doubt our students will succeed on their journey to becoming University Innovation Fellows.”

Throughout the course of the program, participants are set to undergo six weeks of online training, which equips them with design thinking methodologies and techniques. Stanford d.School faculty members will equip the students with the required skills and tools to be able excel as part of the program, by way of bi-weekly conference calls, assignments and projects. Locally, students will work with their faculty mentors and the key innovation stakeholders within ADU.

“At ADU, we make it a priority to provide our students with valuable opportunities to take part in initiatives that foster innovation and fuel creative thinking, as part of our contribution to the UAE’s higher education landscape and in line with the UAE National Innovation Strategy.” Dr. Turkama continued.

Students will take part in events and conferences, and have opportunities to learn from one another, Stanford mentors and leaders in academia and industry. The program will culminate in a final project and presentations of the student work in Stanford in the summer of 2019.

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About Abu Dhabi University (ADU)

Abu Dhabi University (ADU), an internationally recognized university for quality education and applied research that fosters academic excellence and continued growth, was established in 2003, three years after a charter for the university as a key driver of socio-economic growth, was launched by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Ruler’s Representative in the Al Dhafra Region.

At its campuses in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and Dubai, ADU’s mission is to go beyond educating students and to contribute in strengthening the UAE’s global position as a progressive and innovative nation through its internationally competitive programs, world-class faculty, and educational resources. The University aims to hone the creative talent, critical thinking and leadership skills of the nation’s youth and empower them to become global leaders and lifelong learners.

Striving towards educational excellence, ADU is the first university in the country to receive the Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award in 2010 and the first private higher education institution in the UAE and the GCC region to receive an international academic accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). ADU’s College of Business Administration holds international accreditations from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and the prestigious EFMD Quality Improvement System (EQUIS). In addition, its College of Engineering has earned the accreditation of the world renowned Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) of ABET.

Dedicated to achieving excellence on all international academic levels, ADU is ranked in the top 701-750 universities worldwide in the prestigious Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World Universities Ranking. ADU is ranked third on the “International Faculty Index” for its faculty’s diverse cultural backgrounds, and tenth on the “International Student Index” for its international student body. Moreover, ADU also ranked in QS’s top 150 leading institutions under 50 years, the top 20 universities in the Arab World, and the top 6 in the UAE.

Media Contacts

Weber Shandwick for Abu Dhabi University

Mohammed Al Azzam / malazzam@webershandwick.com / +971 2 449 4457

Abu Dhabi University

Noor AlMasri, Senior Marketing Operations Manager / noor.almasri@adu.ac.ae / +971 506195700 

© Press Release 2018