On October 17, NYU Abu Dhabi Student Government hosted the Community Listening (Townhall) session, offering students an opportunity to voice their queries, concerns, and needs to the university administration.

Many members of the NYUAD administration were present to answer student’s questions, including Fabio Piano, Interim Vice Chancellor; Min Pullan, Interim Associate Vice Chancellor, External Relations and Communications; Erich Dietrich, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education; Amol Dani, Chief Operating Officer of NYUAD Business and Administration; Riham Hwaidi, Associate Chief Administrative Business Officer for Facilities Services and Real Estate Operations; and Baishakhi Taylor, Associate Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs.

A week prior, the student community was provided with a form to express their concerns, which formed the agenda of the listening session.

Students had shown diverse concerns about recent big changes in the university. Topics at the session ranged from deciding the commencement day venue for the NYUAD Class of 2026, recent changes in campus dirham policy, the Student Interest Group name change, and AI usage in the classroom.

NYUAD interim president Fabio Piano kick-started the event with his answers to questions regarding the university’s current vision, given the recent changes. His answer was informed by the recent 2025 Alumni Reunion Weekend, where he got to hear NYUAD alumni’s reflections on their transformative university experience. NYUAD, according to him, continues to be the university that equips students with skill sets that they use for life.

The topic of Commencement Day Venue followed, as graduation ceremonies for the Class of 2026 – NYUAD’s largest class yet – will continue to be held at the university gym.

Given the differences between the final decision and students’ wishes, as a poll reported that 90% of respondents wished for an off-campus graduation venue, university administration cited nostalgia and the NYUAD university spirit as major factors in keeping the commencement venue on campus.

However, students also received some good news: for this year’s graduates, the number of tickets per graduate has been increased from 2 to 3. This decision, while welcomed by many, sparked concerns about how to fit this year’s historic batch of students into the space. Planning to realize this aim remains in progress, as the Commencement date is to be determined once spring semester enrollment has been finalized.

Topics regarding Campus Dirhams changes sparked frustration among student attendees, especially as campus dirhams are tentatively updated to only accommodate F&B (Food and Beverage) products. Previously, they could also be utilized to purchase electronics and other necessities available at the NYUAD convenience store.

Students spoke up about the abruptness of such change, the relatively higher prices at the convenience store, and how other essential products (such as personal hygiene products) should also be purchasable with campus dirhams.

The topic was closed out with discussions of forming a student task force which will work on new student finance policies alongside NYUAD Business and Administration Offices.

As of November 22, according to NYUAD Student Government, essential items including personal hygiene products will be purchasable with Campus Dirhams. However, whether items such as electronics can be bought using Campus Dirhams is still up for discussion.

Topics regarding career development, emergency housing closure, Baraha room closure, SIG terminology change, and AI usage were also discussed in the final 30 minutes of the Town Hall session.

As per updates from the Career Development Center, the center has been working to find companies that are open to hiring students. According to the CDC, while there are many organizations wanting to share information with students through information sessions, many do not have much hiring capacity.

Regarding clarification from the administration, emergency housing for students during the breaks, once an option during COVID-19 for those who were unable to return home, is no longer available for students. Students are encouraged to contact the Student Affairs Office for issues related to visas or emergencies that prevent them from returning home during breaks.

Furthermore, select Baraha rooms have been closed to be replaced with a centralized Student Affairs office for students to stop by to ask questions. Additional rooms and spaces for students will be opened in the Residential Buildings. The Highline has also been discussed as a potential new space.

Student Interest Groups at NYUAD have previously been notified of a recent terminology change, notably the name change of terms like Union, Association, or Group into “Student Clubs.” This change is made in accordance with the UAE’s law regarding the required registration of organizations or associations; with this change, student clubs are allowed to operate without legal registration.

Finally, AI usage policies in classrooms are to remain up to the course designs of each professor, rather than standardized through school-wide policies. The university administration advised against the use of AI, as it can harm the skill-learning process of students, which ultimately harms their performances during internships and other career opportunities.