All set to impart education

Updated on: Monday, January 03, 2011

Promoting education is becoming a major policy decision for most countries especially in the Gulf. Leading the way is Qatar that is fast becoming an attractive education destination for prospective international students as well as for people in the region who want to meet the challenges of an ever-changing world. Qatar is keen to emerge and built its reputation as a leading centre for innovative education and research. The country is developing its capital city Doha as a home for research. A number of elite colleges and universities from countries like the United States and Canada have been opening satellite campuses in the country at Education City in Doha. These include the Carnegie Mellon University, Weill Medical College, Texas A&M University and the Virginia Commonwealth University.

Says Tariq Alsada, Press Office Unit Head, Qatar Foundation, “The Qatar Foundation is committed to developing a centre of academic excellence in the Gulf and that means reaching out to everyone. Our country wants to attract the best brainpower thus contributing to our economy and society. Over 88 countries are currently represented in the Education City academic programmes. Though the fees are decided by the universities’ main branches, financial assistance is available to international students, if required.” The Qatar Foundation also runs a financial aid programme in the form of loans, which need not be repaid if the student graduates and works in the country for a certain time period.

There are mainly six universities which are branch campuses of prestigious international institutions that are delivering some of their well known programmes. The city aims to provide diverse opportunities in almost any field of study and is gradually developing as the education hub of the Middle East for students looking for opportunities in the areas of business and management, computer science and information systems, art design and new media studies.

Only a four hour flight from India, Qatar is also one of the safest countries for students — especially girls — in the world. Informs Moamer Qazafi, Director of Marketing and Public Relations, Virginia Commonwealth University which offers besides other courses a Bachelors and Masters degree in the Fine Arts, “We have completed our tenth year in Qatar providing highly ranked design and art education related opportunities to the young people residing in the Middle East, North Africa and Asia. A team of highly skilled professors provide rigorous curricula that prepares students to assume leadership roles in the professional design field of their choice.”

While Weill Cornell Medical College offers a six-year integrated programme of study leading to an MD degree, Texas A & M University has undergraduate programmes in electrical, mechanical, chemical and petroleum engineering. Northwestern University provides degree programmes in journalism and communication. HEC Paris, a graduate school of management offers executive education programmes and research activities. There is also a specialised UG programme in international relations offered by Georgetown University.

Adds Charles E. Thorpe, the first Dean of Carnegie Mellon University, Qatar, which offers undergraduate degree programmes in computer science, business administration and information systems, “Doha has the potential to be the education centre in this part of the region. It has attracted a set of universities in one location that is unmatched in the region, and among the most elite collections of educational institutions anywhere in the world. Qatar has the kind of open society that welcomes academic institutions and supports freedom of inquiry. And this flows from the top.”

So if you want some global exposure and are keen to study in a cross-cultural environment that is not far from home — Qatar has certainly got to be an option!

All set to impart education

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