AUS students to benefit from career mentorship from UAE-based German professionals

Four American University of Sharjah (AUS) students were recently paired with business and engineering professionals as part of Der Impuls—a mentorship program for UAE nationals initiated by the Emirati German Taskforce on 4IR and coordinated by the German Emirati Joint Council for Industry and Commerce (AHK).

The mentorship program aims to provide Emirati students with access to career guidance and help them develop their goals by linking them to senior managers and leaders from major German companies in the UAE.

After learning about the program through the Office of Advancement and Alumni Affairs at AUS, students Zayed Al Hammadi, Mariam Ghanim, Ashba AlKetbi and Mariam Al Sheikh applied for the opportunity and were selected for the program and assigned with mentors following a rigorous admissions and interview process.

The four-to-six-month program will see the students training with UAE-based mentors such as Dr. Michael Glueck, Global Vice President, Industry and Value Advisory at SAP; Dr. Nima Mehrdadi, Regional Managing Director Middle East and Africa at Hella; Marita Mitschein, Co-CEO of Phoenix Rising Global; Helmut Reichelt, General Manager of the DIEHL Representative Office Abu Dhabi; and Dr. Khalid Alexander Sabbah, Managing Director and Head of Domain Service in Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa  at ZF Aftermarket/ZF. Furthermore, the students will have a chance to receive HR trainings by German UAE-based HR Consultants like Nataliya Wiedemeyer, Founder of Graviteams

Industrial engineering major Ashba AlKetbi said she connected quickly with her mentor Dr. Nima Mehrdadi and is looking forward to learning from him over the next semester.

“I am fortunate to be one of the selected students in DerImpuls. I had the opportunity to meet with my mentor Dr. Nima Mehrdadi at a recent Automekanica (Dubai) event where we discussed many issues, including our common interests, the opportunities that I can get out of this program, and how to enhance my career. I am looking forward to learning how to prioritize my interests as I aim for a career in a field I am passionate about,” she said.

Mariam Ghanem, also an industrial engineering student at AUS, sees the program as an opportunity to enhance her entrepreneurial skills to support her plans to open her own industrial engineering firm.

“AUS has positioned me to be able to benefit from such a program by bringing this opportunity to my attention and continuously challenging me academically to be able to hold my own in a pool of intelligent students. Through this program, I hope to get some insights into industrial engineering and receive guidance on how to position myself in a way that enables me to start a quality engineering consultation company within the next 10 years to contribute to the UAE’s economy,” she said.

Der Impuls is not limited to undergraduate students but also welcomes participants seeking to advance their career through graduate studies. Mariam Al Sheikh saw this as an opportunity to enhance her studies as she pursues a Master of Business Administration (MBA) at AUS.

“I believe DerImpuls will supplement my master’s studies at AUS by offering more exposure to real-life scenarios in the professional world. This is a wonderful chance to gain insights into career development and to explore potential areas of interest that I may have not been aware of previously. I believe my AUS education will provide a good basis on which to expand with my mentor,” she said.

Electrical engineering major Zayed Al Hammadi said he hopes the program will help him gain a better understanding of the automotive industry.

“Getting into the Der Impuls program was made easier by the skills I gained at AUS, particularly writing and public speaking. I am looking forward to using this mentorship program to compliment my university studies as I work towards achieving my number one goal—becoming a successful electrical engineer,” he said.

AUS provides students with external opportunities that allow them to further explore their potential and grow academically and professionally. With a solid academic foundation, technical savviness, and confidence, the four students will continue their AUS studies in tandem with the mentorship program and have opportunities to work with AUS faculty and fellow students on innovative research.