GEMS students pick up valuable industry and life skills with Cambridge Judge Business School

• Students from 11 GEMS schools joined five-day CJBS course during break
• Exclusive course operated under the GEMS For Live University programme
• Students pitched commercial projects that tackle the United Nations’ SDGs

GEMS For Life’s University Partnerships programme offered students from 11 GEMS Education schools the opportunity to receive a head-start in developing important life and business skills in an exclusive five-day Personal Development Programme run by the Cambridge Judge Business School (CJBS) during the winter break.

The students were challenged with developing concepts for new products that would be commercially successful while helping to achieve at least one of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030.

They were divided into four project groups to present on their plans to former CJBS Director, Professor Christoph Loch, and the GEMS Education Vice-President of Communications, Jonathan Bramley, at GEMS New Millennium School. The pair then offered the students the benefit of their experience and expertise with feedback and tips.

The Personal Development Programme was led by CJBS Youth Programmes Director, Danny Kerrigan, and is designed for 14-18-year-old students looking to build on their academic education with entrepreneurial and innovation management skills that can be developed into their adult lives whatever their chosen career path.

Students’ projects, presented to an audience that also included their parents, comprised a scheme to generate carbon-free energy through specialised gym equipment; eco-friendly mobile phone covers; and separate initiatives to combat the global water shortage through smart shower attachments and timers, plus a green waste disposal system that exchanges clean water for plastic bottles for disadvantaged people in India.

Danny Kerrigan said: “We wanted to create a programme that attracts younger students and encourages them to see that these transferrable skills are attributes that they will need in their future lives. They still need a technical understanding but, for example, a successful doctor must also work in a team and communicate effectively. The course gives these students a chance to develop these vital skills at a younger age than would otherwise be possible.”

Isidora Muñoz, 15, from GEMS International School, plans to attend a UK university before eventually pursuing a career in psychiatry. She said: “The course was more open than I had expected – we were treated like adults. In the first days, we covered different aspects such as teamwork and then concentrated on the presentations. The presentations practice has helped build my confidence and I gained really useful information generally.”

The GEMS For Life University Partnerships programme has affiliations with more than 180 universities around the world and offers expert guidance, support, and the possibility of scholarships, in co-ordination with the 41 GEMS schools’ counsellors in the UAE.

GEMS For Life also has a thriving internship pillar for its school students offering opportunities at diverse industries including leisure, finance, and engineering, plus an alumni programme with more than 20,000 registered former students.