Training for U.A.E. campus jobs begins

Up to 20 NYU juniors and seniors will serve in leadership positions at NYU Abu Dhabi next fall. They will assist the first class of freshmen attending the NYU satellite campus on Saadiyat Island.

But less than a year before the students will fly to the United Arab Emirates, many of the details of their positions there remain unclear.

NYUAD spokesman Josh Taylor said roughly a third of the students who are hired will act as traditional resident assistants in New York do. (Essentially, their jobs will be to create a sense of community in the on-campus residence halls where they will live.)

Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Tom Ellett said 15 students have applied for traditional RA positions. Candidates will be informed of their status in December.

The remaining two-thirds of the hired students will fulfill other roles and be hired in the spring of 2010. For example, some RAs will provide academic advisement to NYUAD freshmen.

"We're looking for top students who are interested in becoming global citizens," Taylor said, adding that ideal candidates will likely have some flexibility in their course loads.

NYUAD RAs will be enrolled at NYUAD for the fall 2010 and spring 2011 semesters, but they will graduate with degrees from NYU New York.

Some NYU programs require that students complete their last credits in New York, which would normally bar students from studying outside of New York during their senior year.

But Taylor said the university will try to accommodate students who are qualified RA candidates.

"Given that we're working with a small group of students, we're going to do everything possible to develop academic solutions for as many of them as possible," Taylor said.

NYUAD RAs will receive full room and board. Taylor said they will, at minimum, maintain their New York financial aid packages.

CAS sophomore John Hamilton applied to be an NYUAD RA.

"The thing with Abu Dhabi is that it's a new and dynamic program that NYU is pioneering," Hamilton said. "It's a chance to go over there and create change."

Ellett said that NYUAD RA training will cover issues including assimilation to the culture in the UAE and working abroad.