Hundreds of Emirati students have graduated from the Abu Dhabi Vocational Education and Training Institute (Adveti) and its affiliate, the Secondary Technical School.
On Tuesday, the 632 were celebrated for their achievements at a ceremony in Mohammed bin Zayed City, attended by Sheikh Saif bin Zayed, Minister of Interior and Deputy Prime Minister.
They were from the third class of Adveti and the first class of STS. The 600 Adveti graduates included 420 women.
"You, the youth of this nation, are the future of this nation and you have the capability and the energy to make a great start, to be creative in every domain," said Sheikh Saif in his address.
He said that Adveti had achieved "a quantum leap in building national cadres in the various disciplines that are on demand in the UAE job market" in its six years of operation.
Dr Adel Al Ameri, managing director of Adveti, told the graduates the road ahead was filled with challenges.
But "we have armed our students with the science and knowledge they need to pursue successful careers", Dr Al Ameri said.
Mubarak Al Shamsi, deputy director general of the Abu Dhabi Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training, which oversees Adveti, also spoke.
Mr Al Shamsi said that most of the graduates had already received offers to join companies across the country.