Dubai teens swap uniforms for gowns, buses for limos as proms cap school year

Usually, proms are organised for students that have written board exams, at the end of their school year

Nasreen Abdulla

Published: Wed 3 Jul 2024, 6:00 AM

Last updated: Thu 4 Jul 2024, 7:03 AM

For Dubai resident Zeineldein, the most memorable part of his first prom experience was not the dressing up in suits or showing up in a limousine with his friends. Instead, it was the feeling of community he experienced at the end of the evening.

“The most enjoyable thing about prom was the sense of community,” he said. “Everyone felt like close friends during the event. Not only that but people who’d left the school made surprise appearances.”

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The 16-year-old student of Repton School is one of hundreds of UAE students who have been attending end-of-year proms that have been taking place across the country over the last few weeks. A prom is usually a dance party that takes place in mostly formal settings at hotel ballrooms.

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“The event took place at the H hotel and included a night of music and dancing in the ballroom with everyone dressed in their sharpest attire,” he said. “This was my first experience and to be honest, it exceeded my expectations.”

Zeineldein (extreme right) with his friends

Some proms are organised by students while others are school-led. “I’ve seen a decent mix of proms organised by students and schools, but in our case it was organised by the students,” he said.

Usually, proms are organised for students that have written board exams, at the end of their academic year. In British syllabus schools, this is usually Year 11 and Year 13 and in other schools, this is generally Grade 10 and Grade 12.

Nine months of organising

For Cambridge International School Dubai student Minha Shanod, the much-awaited prom came at the end of nine months of organising. “My friend came up to me in September as soon as the school year had begun and suggested that I should organise prom,” she said. “I thought it was a good idea and began organising in October.”

Her first step was to send out emails to hotels around Dubai. “I sent out emails to 68 hotels and only half of them responded,” she said. “Based on the quotes they sent me, I shortlisted them to a few. Then I had to look for DJs, photo booths, photographers, sashes and trophies for the winners of the night and based on all their charges, I had to do the finances and decide on a price for the ticket.”

Minha Shanod

Minha said deciding the ticket prices was the most difficult task. “The initial price for the ticket was Dh275,” she said. “Then I started to get cheaper quotes for many things. The photo booth was initially charging Dh2,500 but I managed to get it down to Dh2,000 and finally we were able to bring the ticket prices down to Dh230.”

She admitted that at one point, she wanted to give up because it was a very thankless job. “A lot of people were saying the tickets were too expensive and that we were cheating people,” she said. “We were not even making a profit off of it. I later found that a group a girls from our grade had formed a WhatsApp chat just to talk bad about us and encourage people not to come to our prom.”

However, she powered on and more than 80 students attended the event on June 21. “It was small and cosy and everyone had a lot of fun,” she said. “It was a bonus that I got voted as 'Prom Queen'. I was not expecting it but I was very thankful to my friends.”

End of school life

For Dubai College student Ethan Mellor, this year was his third prom but it was every bit as enjoyable as the others. “I went with my group of friends from Dubai College, and some of my friends from the Centre for Musical Arts also joined us,” he said. “It was a lovely event to gather with my friends to celebrate the end of my school life here in Dubai.”

Ethan Mellor

The 18-year-old, who attended the prom with his friend, said there were many things he enjoyed about the event. “We had student organised prizes and watched a graduation video put together by the students,” he said. “The buffet was lovely with a lot of variation, and the overall atmosphere was enjoyable because I was celebrating with my close friends and wider school community.”

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