NYU Abu Dhabi will hold its 13th commencement ceremony in-person, following a wave of uncertainty on whether the event would be safe amid a cautious ceasefire between the United States and Iran.
The ceremony will take place on May 20 at Etihad Arena, the largest indoor venue in the Middle East — a shift from the site’s usual celebration in the performance gym on campus. In a Friday email to community members, Fabio Piano, the site’s interim vice chancellor, said the university will continue to “monitor the regional situation closely” and modify plans “if needed.” Piano added that the ceremony will still be livestreamed for students and guests who are unable to join in person.
“We have undertaken planning for this year’s ceremony in close coordination with our security partners and in alignment with official guidelines,” NYU spokesperson Joseph Tirella said in a statement to WSN. “We look forward to sharing more details in the days ahead with our graduates and invited guests.”
NYU Abu Dhabi’s four-week summer courses will also resume in a hybrid format, and students will have the option to live on campus in residence halls. Students residing in the United Arab Emirates are required to attend courses in-person, while international students can choose whether to attend remotely.
Abbas Raza, a senior at the Abu Dhabi campus, told WSN that many students are happy the ceremony is taking place in-person. He said that after attending NYU’s all-university commencement in New York City with his family on May 14, he will travel to attend the ceremony in Abu Dhabi, but his parents will not be there due to the short notice.
“What I’ve been seeing on our WhatsApp chat and Facebook groups is that a lot of parents aren’t coming because they don’t feel safe or aren’t able to secure visas to the UAE on time,” Raza said. “Even if they are able to secure visas, a lot of flights are getting canceled. If you look at flights right now to the UAE, coming during such short notice would be incredibly expensive.”
In an email sent late April to graduating seniors, administrators asked students to complete a survey detailing whether they plan to attend commencement, which was originally scheduled for May 19. The university will provide flight and on-campus accommodations for graduates attending. Classes will still take place online for the rest of the semester, and on-campus residents were refunded housing fees following evacuation orders, meaning students will not return to the residence halls unless they are attending graduation.
The campus temporarily closed late March after Iran threatened to target American campuses in the Middle East following U.S.-Israeli strikes on two of its major universities. Last month, administrators opened limited access — allowing students, staff and faculty to apply to use campus facilities — and a few days later, the site reopened regular daily access to the campus. On Saturday, all flight restrictions in the UAE were lifted, returning to “normal status,” according to the country’s General Civil Aviation Authority.
Around one month into the indefinite ceasefire between the warring parties, President Donald Trump told congress on Tuesday that the “hostilities” that began in February have been “terminated.” The countries are now negotiating a peace deal to be delivered by Pakistani officials.
On Thursday, Iranian leaders allegedly told officials from Saudi Arabia and Oman that it would “heavily target the Emirates” in its retaliatory strikes, the Wall Street Journal reported. Since the war began on Feb. 28, the UAE has been the most targeted Middle Eastern nation and saw over 2,800 Iranian drones and missiles — with some landing five miles away from the NYU Abu Dhabi campus. Last week, Israel sent the UAE advanced devices that “fire laser-guided rockets,” among other weapon systems to help the country intercept Iranian drones and missiles.
The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research announced on April 15 that public and private higher education institutions should return to in-person operations starting Monday, April 20. The ministry also clarified that some private institutions, such as NYU, may also implement hybrid and remote learning models as needed.
Contact Leena Ahmed at [email protected].