“No, wait… who do you think you are?”

“A few weeks in Dubai and you’re a completely different person.”

“Who are you? Damnnnn Dania!”

These are some of the most frequent greetings I received during my 10-day winter break at home. What was it that changed? In my eyes, I was the same old person. Not many alterations were made to my physical appearance from August to December, besides a new haircut — well, relatively new, since I had a similar one before — and maybe a few new outfits. Clearly, I had been a hot mess before leaving for university and “Dubai” had somehow whipped me into shape. These observations by my peers led me to re-evaluate my life. How many new clothes did I buy and how much money had I spent? This assessment turned out to be quite alarming, to say the least.

Prior to NYU Abu Dhabi, I attended an all-girls high school where we had to wear a uniform. There was no incentive to lose sleep over perfecting your hair, contouring and highlighting your cheekbones or choosing an outfit that would guarantee you at least an 8.5 out of 10 rating from your friends. Besides, even if you wanted to, there wasn’t much that could be done — jewelry was prohibited and makeup, nail polish and extravagant hairstyles or colours were definite no-nos. Our uniform shirts had to be loosely fitted, skirts knee-length, socks just above the ankles and shoes lily white. The contrast is evident as you enter NYUAD.

Whether it’s a shorts-and-tank-top or suit-and-tie kind of day, the freedom is all yours. I decided to ask NYUAD students about how their fashion sense has changed, if at all, since coming here. The responses varied from privileges unique to NYUAD, sudden maturity, blatant reluctance or inspiration to make alterations and my personal favourite, the new-found appreciation for the abaya and kandora, grounded in its comfort and the desire to emulate Emirati fashion.

There was a consensus among some students that it does not matter how one dresses while on campus.

“I want to wear something fancy sometimes, like I often would when I lived in Kazakhstan, but I am discouraged because I hear how people judge others on campus that dress up for class, and I don’t want anyone to make sarcastic comments about me putting in effort,” said Dana Galimzhanova, Class of 2020.

Alex Petriv, Class of 2019, reiterated Galimzhanova and described a change in his personal dressing style.

“I became more chill. I used to dress nicely, wearing suits and official clothes but here no one cares about this. I wear comfortable, sporty clothes,” said Petriv.

Other students reckon that there is an expectation to dress exceptionally well for class.

“There is pressure to maintain some sort of [so-called] welldressedness. There is a widespread understanding that informality isn’t something you take with you to the classroom. You wouldn’t wear slippers or pajamas to class for example,” said Daniel Rey, Class of 2020.

“I feel older now and I need to refine my choice of clothing to suit this maturity. Therefore, I started dressing more formally,” said Sergiy Stupak, Class of 2020.

Students also felt that increased financial privileges, as well as having the freedom to spend as they see fit, have helped to develop a habit of spending significantly on apparel.

“Kenya doesn’t have such variety in terms of clothing brands and shopping malls. I didn’t care much about these things. Since coming here I’ve bought more clothes than I have in the last four years,” stated Dhruvi Joshi, Class of 2020.

Similar sentiments resonated elsewhere.

“I’m more into high-end fashion stuff now. There’s more freedom in terms of spending. I spend a lot more on clothes than I’ve done before. Like on Y-3’s and eccentric Versace pants,” claims Brian Peng, Class of 2020.

Then there were students who started altering their sense of style in response to being in a new place with different norms, warmer weather and the region’s own, unique traditional wear.

“I began wearing scarves. Wearing a scarf in Colombia is making yourself a mystical character in a way, it is very feminine and oriental, a man wearing a scarf is not very accepted but I’ve always found them beautiful and I feel comfortable wearing them here,” elaborated Rey.

Another student appreciated the fact that in Abu Dhabi he could wear sandals as opposed to in Norway, where the cold weather makes this impossible.

“I needed to get Oud. It smells amazing. This is not something I would have bought if I studied elsewhere,” said Raeesa Omar, Class of 2020.

“The idea of a kandora is fascinating," Rey said. “It’s something I can use anytime. I feel more entitled to wear them here. It makes me empathize with the locals and allows me to speak Arabic more freely. I also like to be mistaken for an Emirati,” he added.

A few students also expressed that they felt the need to dress in a conservative way.

“I feel more self-conscious if I wear tight clothing. I feel weird wearing skinny jeans or tank tops. I try to be more respectful,” said Rey.

Whether there is a NYUAD uniform is not definitive. However, what is clear is that students feel free to dress as they like, based on different perceptions of the status quo on campus. For some this freedom is being able to dress comfortably and not worry about what people think. For others, it’s the freedom to be creative, express themselves through their fashion sense and try new things. I suppose therefore that it might be safe to assume that the NYUAD uniform is a liberal one.