•   Student contest to be held under patronage of His Excellency Hussain bin Ibrahim Al Hammadi 
•   Participation open to all UAE undergraduates 

Abu Dhabi-UAE: 3 January, 2018 – Abu Dhabi University (ADU) has opened registration for its sixth annual United Arab Emirates Undergraduate Research Competition (URC), held under the patronage of His Excellency Hussain bin Ibrahim Al Hammadi, Minister of Education.
URC aims to encourage undergraduate students from various higher education institutions across the seven emirates to expand their critical and analytical thinking abilities through adopting an out-of-the-box mindset to tackle topics of interest in scientific research and experience first-hand the process of scholarly exploration. The competition aligns with the UAE’s government efforts to establish a knowledge-based economy and reinforce the UAE’s position as a global hub for science and innovation.
Teams of up to four participants can register and upload their submissions through the university’s website www.adu.ac.ae/urc by January 30, 2018. An independent expert committee, comprising 60 scientists, engineers and higher education professionals, will evaluate the entries. Shortlisted candidates get to present their projects at the URC finale at ADU’s Abu Dhabi campus on April 30, 2018.
Speaking on the competition, Dr Ashraf Khalil, Director of Research at ADU and organizer of URC, said: “The ultimate goal of education is to equip graduates with the knowledge and skills to thrive in the future job market. It is imperative for universities to provide students with opportunities to practice research so that they can develop their critical thinking, problem-solving, adaptability and team work capabilities that are crucial in the job market. ADU takes pride in leading a nationwide competition that motivates undergraduate students across the UAE to strengthen their academic experience through research.”
Dr Khalil noted that over the past five editions, the candidates showed a high level of competitiveness and ability, demonstrated in the number, quality and variety of research papers submitted.
Since its inception, the competition witnessed a dramatic growth in the number of participants – from 50 teams representing eight universities in the first edition to 240 teams from 30 major universities in the fifth edition. The total value of prizes for the winning teams, this year, will exceed AED100,000.