Updated on June 16 with details from a university statement and comments from an advisor.
For the first time in 12 years, Qatar’s largest university will have a new official at the helms.
According to QNA, Dr. Sheikha Abdulla Al-Misnad has been replaced by Dr. Hassan Rashid Al-Derham as president of Qatar University, following a meeting with the board of Regents today.
Al-Derham has held the post of Vice President of Research at QU for the past eight years.
According to his online biography, he is also an assistant professor at the College of Engineering and has a PhD in construction project management from the University of Glamorgan in Wales, UK.
His appointment comes at a time when QU is expanding and putting a greater emphasis on boosting its profile through research.
Al-Misnad was the fifth QU president, taking over the role in 2003. An alumnus of the university, she graduated in 1977 with a Bachelor’s degree in Education and followed that the next year with a diploma.
She got her PhD from Durham University in the UK with a thesis on “The Development of Modern Education in the Gulf States with Special Reference to Women’s Education.”
A statement issued by the university later in the day said:
“The Board (of Regents) acknowledged the instrumental role Prof. Al-Misnad played in the years since she assumed presidency in 2003, and recognized the phase under her leadership as a transformational era in the history of the university during which the institution reached new heights of academic quality, research excellence and international recognition.
The Board also expressed confidence that the new president Dr. Al Derham will carry the QU legacy forward.”
Criticism
The statement did not say why Al-Misnad is leaving, although a senior advisor to QU told Doha News that she had felt that, having served three, four-year terms at the top, it was time for “a fresh personality, a fresh vision.”
“She served one term longer than any other president and this was simply a decision she made that it was time for a change,” the consultant said, adding that the university community had been aware of Al-Misnad’s plans since last fall.
Al-Misnad has drawn the ire of some of the community in the past for her work at QU.
Under her leadership, the university tightened standards a decade ago, raising the required gradepoint average to graduate from 1.5 to 2.0 out of a 4.0 scale.
That roughly translates into an increase in the minimum standard from a D+/C- average to a C.
Speaking about her efforts to help reform the university to an international publication in 2013, Al-Misnad said:
“Asking students to follow certain standards whereby they could not graduate until they reached a certain level, that created a lot of problems because people were not used to it. When you tell people that in order to achieve they have to follow certain rules, that is not accepted.”
And in a panel session in Canada the same year, she also addressed what she called a widespread motivation problem among local youth, saying:
“I’m always concerned that we live in a blessed society with economic resources and a small population. I’m always thinking how we can motivate our youth. In my country, the national population looks at things as entitlement, not like an opportunity where you need to work hard on it.”
The remarks drew criticism from many students at the time, who called for an apology and her immediate resignation.
Qatar University growth
Since it began in 1973 as Qatar’s College of Education with just 150 students, QU has seen enormous growth over the years.
Its student body now stands at more than 14,000, a number it hopes to increase to 25,000 by 2019 as it undergoes a massive campus-wide expansion.
QU has eight colleges, including the recently-established College of Medicine, which is due to take its first group of students in September for its MD program.
The majority of students are Qatari, and the university is particularly popular with female students as it operates a segregated campus for male and female students at the undergraduate level.
To cope with increased demand from students for places, the university will renovate or construct 11 new buildings including purpose-built facilities for four colleges in the next five years.
Thoughts?
Her comments were correct from my standpoint. Motivation is a problem, made worse,or visa versa,by wealth and the mindset that who you know/are will be the standard to meet as opposed to the academic standard(s). Motivation and academic standards are mainly problems of the males,as a rule,not females.
Reminds me of the anti-rich comment by Mr. B.
You lost me, anti-rich?Mr B? Motivation has nothing to do with wealth unless you allow yourself to be entitled and set low standards for life.
Dr Sheikha Al Misnad is an enlightened, passionate educator. That’s what Qatar needs, enlightened, passionate education for its young people. I hope she continues working in some capacity. She is too good to retire.
sorry, thats far from true, ask most QU student , she a very paranoid person , that haven’t accomplish any great deal ,the university lost a huge a mount of students because of it, she was a very respected academic among the QU students.
you seem to have contradicted yourself…..
i just saw that & corrected it .
sorry i meant wasn’t respected , LOL
Where do you get numbers to support your ‘lost a huge amount of students’? According to QU website: “in 1980, the number of enrolled students was 2,600. By Fall Semester 2008, the number of registrants for study at Qatar University had reached 7245 male and female students, equaling almost 1/6th of the eligible Qatari population. By Spring 2014, the number of registrants for study at the university had reached over 14,000 male and female students.” Hardly sounds liks a loss to me. They might have had more, who knows? but now have to compete with all the options at Qatar Foundation and around the world. Therefore, they have to improve the standards ASAP. And, while Al-Derham is at it, please signpost all the buildings clearly – it’s a schlepp finding places on the campus. PS: interesting to see that of the over 1400 students that graduated this year, only 381 were men. One can draw various conclusions, I imagine….
its the only university in Qatar that student (mostly girls) can have female only classes , buildings , etc . the number your comparing shows only the population growth 1980-2008 (2,600-7245 student ) look up number of graduates , enrolling students , ( university rating ) since DR shikha took here position .
No. This is not the reason. For Qatari men, they have many other options that does not include studying university, the most popular one is military. For non-Qatari men, if they don’t have the money or reached the standard requirements, they would rather study at their own countries. However, for Qatari girls this is the only option, and for non-Qatari girls its still the only option because most families won’t send their daughters to study abroad alone.
On another thread you were commenting that the Education City universities don’t attract/enroll Qatari students, and yesterday you were congratulating the Qatar University students who have created a new game and said people should stop badmouthing Qatar University.
I’m not sure I can follow the consistency in your argument if today you are saying that actually QU was run by a paranoid person who never accomplished very much and led to a lot of students not studying.
Forgive me but it’s almost as if you are blowing in the wind and congratulating whoever you are told to congratulate.
many great projects / companies / workers are manged by the worst kind of bosses/ principles
im saying that QU is good place manged with wrong person .
QU & its student suffered from bad management for a decade
& EC still one of Qatar’s worst investments in education with an output of less than 1000 graduate since they started . QU had 150 qatari student in 1970s ,which no one university in EC has Today
Beg to differ … VCUQ has nearly 300 students, TA&M has over 500 students, Weill Cornell has over 250 students, GU SFS has also roughly 250 students on campus … yes these universities are “small”, but then this was the intention behind it I would say…
QATARI STUDENTS???? im comparing QU qatari students , your numbers sound way off since less than 300 qatari graduated this year .
Oh sorry, I somehow overread the “Qatari” in your comment, my mistake … Qatari numbers vary from roughly 15-40% of these numbers, so you are right there are not 150 Qatari students at any of the EC institutions, yet … I do hope though that this will change, though the entry requirements of these universities are tougher …
my question now , will these universities still be here with those low numbers & the government stopped its funding??
If the government funding stops, they stop. There will never be a single penny of American taxpayer money used to support them.
True again but I think the tuition fees are rather hefty and should somehow cover the costs … and then again are we certain that the government will stop the funding … I think it will continue in one way or the other …
Oh agreed on the funding – nowhere near as certain on the ability of tuition to cover costs. I was just answering the poster’s question.
All the schools you mentioned have more staff/faculty then students,and thing is these so called expat managers/heads are hiring there friends/family without any experience, which makes it unfair for the locals/experienced individuals.
True, the faculty-student-ratio is amazing in those universities, I wish I had this during my studies 😉 But then again I only studied at a public university of applied sciences, where I didn’t pay up to 150k a year … As for the hiring, isn’t this more or less the norm in this region? Or even in the world?
A decade? Are you suggesting that Qataris can hold to jobs for 10 years even if they are that bad?
That’s a pretty harsh accusation to be making about one of the most senior roles in the entire country. Next thing you will be saying that she only had that job because of connections and wasta.
im saying , she was bad for QU, ask most QU students
Fortunately, we don’t live in a world where the students are the prime decision makers and drivers at university.
else this would be more tolerable place , LOL
Why? Because she thought that an educational institute ought to be about learning, academic rigor and hard work?
You seem to have a lot to say about her, it would be very helpful if you could list all the reasons why you feel she was so poor at her job for the last 10 years.
Indeed. She cleared out much of the deadwood, oversaw a massive IT expansion, GREATLY raised academic standards and accountability among both staff and students – though there is still a long way to go in that regard. She accomplished much.
the number of enrollment/graduates & the university rating ,10 yrs should be more than enough
So what will your benchmark for success be for the new President? Please tell us how high the enrollment numbers will need to be for him to have done his job up to your standards.
QU is very mediocre place that has made great strides, under her leadership, from being an abysmal place. The former president had great vision to make QU a reputable place, but was thwarted by vested interests.
your point , as an expat , outsider , ask most QU who was their experience under that time since she became the head of QU .
But not only Qataris attend QU…..there’s a Bengali who works with me who graduated from QU.
I must agree. There are of course good and intelligent students there like in any university you can find in the world, but the university itself is mediocre.
Dr Sheikha Al Misnad seemed a very wise woman. Perhaps the following gentleman is a good step, I do not know much about him. Hopefully, the university will push itself to grow stronger.
Exactly. The stereotypes are that QF students are having orgies in the cafeteria and that the QU students don’t have two brain cells between them. Both are horribly wrong – there are very strong students at QU. However, the institution itself is weak, but has been rapidly improving and hopefully will continue to do so.
QU doesn’t need a mere manger, it has many of those – it needs a leader.
yeah, are you politics grad ???
I’m well beyond the stage where one’s major in one of their degrees means anything.
principals or principles? (Or both???)
I have a tremendous amount of respect for Dr Sheikha, having met and talked to her on many occasions and I’m sorry to hear you feel this way. Can you please provide concrete evidence for your statements, i.e. that she is “paranoid”, hasn’t accomplished “any great deal”, and that the university lost a huge number (not amount, please) of students? Regarding this last point – wouldn’t that loss be due to the university’s emphasis on raising academic standards? I’d be interested to know.
She expected students to meet certain standards, students expect to get a piece of paper. The lack of competence of QU graduates is shocking and do not match the needs of the Qatar market. If it wasn’t for nationalistation their opportunities would be limited
Well, based on the way that segments of the Qatari community failed to support her and the hateful twitter campaigns against her it is understandable why she would feel persecuted. As for losing students – my understanding is that the students who were lost were not generally university level material anyway. That is part of the reason why trades training needs to be emphasized more.
(my understanding is that the students who were lost were not generally university level material anyway.) then why build another universities (aka EC) if students according to you (were not generally university level material anyway.)so if they cannot get into public one, they will get into thr privet ones ??? ARE YOU IN THE RIGHT PLACE , just asking .lol
No, they won’t get in anywhere – they should be streamed towards the trades.
what a wast
Indeed, it is shame that the school system is not set up that there are options available for all students of differing aptitudes and abilities. Unfortunately, there are very few options available for those who don’t want university or else don’t have that set of abilities. There are many students whose strength lie outside of the traditional university classroom – where do they go in Qatar to be developed?
what is shame is denying the public higher education ,while its public education (QU)
bad management made it so
We fundamentally disagree on that. Every Qatari should have equal opportunity to apply to QU. Not every Qatari should have equal opportunity to attend. If you don’t have the necessary background education or skills, then there should be public education alternatives available to you. I will agree with that 100%. Should it be university – no, not unless the entry requirements are met. This is starting to be addressed with the Community College system.
under her management , entry requirement is one thing being accepted into different colleges in the university is another, she made it so hard that ppl were force to take majors that they hated / or according to here logic ( the market needed) .its a public university . god bless the ones who grad form it they been throw s***
Yes, many students got treated badly during the shift from English to Arabic (again, speak to the previous government on that) we will agree on that 110%. It was handled very badly, but it wasn’t her doing, it was the government’s. Colleges are not different than the university – equal opportunity to apply, but if you don’t have the requirements why should you be accepted? There are only so many positions available in pharmacy or engineering every year and the standards are fixed. Why should unqualified students be accepted? You either meet the minimum requirements for your college or you don’t – it is quite simple and universal in this regard.
its having standers after standers which makes it harsh environment to be in ,NOT here doing , if you hear & see the comments she made that made her a the object for pointing fingers at , she could had said no & walked away . no one was Forcing her .
Didn’t you say below that you think she failed because the university ranking wasn’t as high as you think it should have been.
But now you are saying that she wasn’t a good president because she implemented higher admission standards.
I don’t understand how you can believe both those statements. They aren’t consistent.
No, they aren’t, but they are very typical of the attitude of a number of QU students. They want the university to be ranked higher and have more prestige, but they balk at the steps taken to achieve that.
Maybe we are expected to believe that kids that couldn’t be bothered trying hard and doing well at secondary school should, by right, be granted a place at a university where they will magically graduate with a perfect GPA.
I can’t even understand why these numbskulls who flunk out of high school even apply to university, unless of course they are too stupid to know that a university is an educational institution.
Well, I have encountered many who are not ‘stupid’, but they have never had to apply themselves and then graduated from a weak secondary school with a 60% and wonder why they aren’t accepted to university, of if they are accepted, why they weren’t accepted to chemical engineering.
The fact that they were encouraged to apply in the first place sets unrealistic expectations that causes problems in the future. The mindset that they have a ‘right’ to go to university is widely held. The raising of standards will take a number of years, as is will and understanding of the difference between equality of opportunity versus equality of outcome.
when you mange a public university as a private one you would have low ratings , imposing a second language as the country’s only public university , not offering enough classes /per subject that accommodate the over crowded classrooms, just like QF & EC management . QU management were looking for looks more than brain , LOL
Overcrowding is rather common on public universities … my economics subjects were always overcrowded, despite the fact that there were 3 different professors offering 6-9 classes per week … this is what you get most of the times before you select your majors, at which time I would say roughly 10-20% of the students have fallen out due to their performance …
wasta?
I posted a response earlier, but for some reason it disappeared, so I’m re-posting it. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Dr Sheikha for her emphasis on academic standards and quality, for bringing QU out of obscurity and stagnation, for forging ties with local industry and wider research community. I’m sorry that you feel so negative about her leadership. I would be interested to know if you can provide evidence for your statements, especially the one claiming that she is “paranoid”. It sounds like a logical fallacy known as ad hominem – a personal attack instead of a rational argument. As for the university losing a huge number (not amount, please) of students – well, isn’t it possible that the “loss” is connected to the university’s raising its standards and tightening requirements for passing course and graduating?
I admire the respect that you have for Prof. Sheikha, and cannot fully disregard everything you said. But I must say that as a QU Alum, I can’t bring myself to fully accept your comments either. I was proud that our president was a woman, an enlightened and well educated woman too, and that gave females a great sense of pride that Prof. Sheikha would understand our pressures and keep us in mind with her decision making towards policies for the university. I never felt happy in all my years in the university, and it was due to her poor decision-making and lack of initiative.
I met her several times, and even interviewed her once for an article I was writing. I was surprised that she was a woman of very little substance, or perhaps did not feel as enthusiastic as I was to discuss campus regulations and academic reforms. I always wanted to feel proud of the university I attended, but could never bring myself to. And I’m not that thrilled about the change of president either. I don’t care how many new buildings and lecture halls and parking lots they’re building, this won’t change the fact that the university is still stuck in the Middle Ages. In this day and age, students are becoming more equipped with greater access to knowledge and information. We need a university that keeps up with the international standard of education, and stop with the mediocre powerpoints and lazy lack-lustre professors, that are only teaching for the paycheck and completely disregard eager-to-learn students. I was an honor-student in high school, graduated second in my class. That sense of dedication to my grades and academic excellence died after a semester or two in the university. Want to know why no one wants to hire QU graduates? Because everyone knows that even at an entry-level position, with all the extensive training the applicant may receive, that person would still be lacking in the basic knowledge required to fulfill their tasks. Thank you Qatar University, and thank you Prof. Sheikha.
After reading my post I thought I should add a point. I know that anyone reading might tell me to go read a book, and equip myself with the knowledge needed to be a fully functioning employee to the best of my ability. I have read extensively and tried everything in my power to make myself better, and I truly hope I am. I just hope that other students are just as enthusiastic or driven, and that the four/five miserable years we spent in university didn’t suck the will to be and do better out of them.
You’ve made some good points in your post and I think your critical comments about the quality of teaching at QU hit the nail on the head. As a foreign teacher with long professional experience in this country, I have come to a conclusion that teacher training is one of the most crucial elements lacking in the educational setting here. Plus, it seems to me that in a country with claims to educational leadership in the region, very few nationals want to be teachers or even appreciate the teaching profession. In fact, teachers are looked down upon! These are the key issues that need to be tackled: establishing more competitive, demanding teacher training programmes and encouraging a shift in popular perception of teachers’ social status (not just through higher salaries – here is where competition and emphasis on qualifications should come in).
It may be that such efforts are already being made and it may take some time for them to bring any results, I’m not sure. But what I am sure about is that more well-educated, enthusiastic, and, I’d say, idealistic young people are needed to enter teaching (at any level, but starting from primary, definitely) in Qatar. Unfortunately, what I keep hearing is that it’s very hard to find local students who’d like to study at the QU’s College of Education. I don’t think even EC universities have any Qatari academics (with one exception of Dr Amal Al-Malki) – and why not??
If you look at the example of Finland, some decades ago they turned their failing system of education around by making the teaching profession one of the best qualified, most competitive and best paid professions in the country. And now it’s one of the top countries for educational standards. Maybe this is the way Qatar should go, too, so that the quality of teaching at all levels could improve and this low perception of teaching as a job could be changed.
Personally, I couldn’t think of a more satisfying job to do and wouldn’t want to change it for anything. I love my job as a teacher.
And you sound like a perfect candidate for a teacher – and I mean it as a compliment! 🙂
Thank you. Excellent post.
The night of the long knives?
another one bites the dust 🙁
Sadly, no surprise there.
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Deleting for spam.
Her job is done, over ten years on the same job is to long.. I believe she will move to QF.. dr. Al derham will go an amazing job… He is well regarded and a respected academic
Do you know him? I don’t understand where did you get this “respected academic” just lookup his profile … he barely published few papers and graduated from an unknown university …
Yes I know him very well and I know all students at QU think highly of him
That does not make him a “respected academic”. He’s an assistant professor, hardly an accomplished scholar by definition.
He may very well be a capable leader and effective administrator, but your criteria for what constitutes a “respected academic” is incorrect.
maybe like most so called ( respected academics ) at QF & EC ,wink wink
Sadly, most academics in Qatar, be they EC or QU, are not world class. There are few exceptions, particularly at Georgetown, but not many overall.
who s fault is that, the universities , HR ppl or QF ?
Combination of all of the above, but mostly conditions out of the control of any institution or HR person – Qatar is not a desirable location for many academics, it is something of a backwater. In decades to come if the QSTP and related initiatives are successful that very well might change. Regardless, recruiting of the world-class is very very difficult, they are in demand everywhere. At the end of the day, many institutions are the same as any business in Qatar, they don’t get who they want, rather, they take who they can get.
There are any number of reasons for this, but just off of the top of my head are) 1. getting away from the home campus and the collaboration activities and office politics, 2. Qatar is stressful for trailing spouses and children – people don’t want the hassle of fighting to get school places for their children in very mediocre schools, etc. You need certain things on a resume – supervising doctoral students, etc, that are not possible, or else very difficult, In Qatar. That is why there are so many very early career people and so few superstars.
then , what is the use of having them here.
An excellent question indeed that many many hours have been spent discussing over beer, shisha, coffee, and any other habit you wish to name. Again, I refer you to the decision makers of the previous administration; they might be able to answer you better. Off of the top of my head I would say prestige (gotta do one better than Dubai you know), the opportunity for an education for those whose families won’t let them travel abroad, and the hope of a high quality education without the ‘contamination’ that students would get living abroad.
the moment the funds stop, they will leave , yet another waste in the education / government money.
Indeed, why would they stay? That would be silly. Many would agree with you that the money wasn’t wisely spent, but that is not the doing of the EC universities – again, I think that the questions should be asked of the former Qatari government.
actually they are part of it, should they open a branch of their school in a small country when they wont take in most of its resident & have one lowest of university grad numbers in the region ??? someone is getting a big paycheck LOL.
They have zero obligation to take ‘most ‘of its residents – the obligation is to take the residents who can meet the entry requirements up to the number of students that they have been funded for. Again, take it up with the government, perhaps ask them to renegotiate the contracts, but stop trying to make the schools look like the villians. The system is designed and run by Qataris, not the foreign schools.
sorry , they play the part in this so called (education city ) play. knowing they would never have full classes, low number of grads, risking their schools name going in a country ( WITH LOW EDUCATING RATES ) according to some.they saw a big CAKE OF MONEY & they are getting a big chunk of it .
Ah, you should hear the promises that were made by both sides. “Oh yes, all Qatari students speak adequate English, oh yes, they are academically prepared, oh yes, you will have the same academic freedom as in the US, No, we won’t try to control your hiring or internal affairs’. I’m sure that the former Qatari government could give you a similar list from their perspective.
Not fair to generalise that all Qatar schools are mediocre. I myself, as a parent, am very happy with the standards at my daughter’s international school. She is doing great academically and is enjoying her time here. On places, that’s for a longer seperate discussion. Your remaining points have merit, but I think education is a sensitive subject and yes, Qatar has a long way to go and is trying to do in years, what it has taken other countries decades or even centuries to achieve..politics aside, it’s a learning curve on both sides of the fence.
Yes, the pace of change has been breathtaking for sure. Indeed, I painted with a very broad brush about schools and conflated quality with availability. How about a compromise and say that issues with schooling for dependents is a big concern?
Happy to compromise and agree there is a long road to walk yet…….and on a personal level, regarding schools and reporting, I’d rather have a full ‘Engine bay’ of academic issues to deal with, as long as my kids are physically safe in school, have a secure environment and inherently enjoy their education process. Kids grow up too fast as it is!
Sadly, the issues that I am thinking of deal less with academics and more with ethnic relations, bullying, abuse, etc, etc.
Sadly, the issues that I am thinking of deal less with academics and more with ethnic relations, bullying, abuse, infrastructure shortcomings, fraud, etc, etc.
Yes, the pace of change has been breathtaking for sure. Indeed, I painted with a very broad brush about schools and conflated quality with availability. How about a compromise and say that issues with schooling for dependents is a big concern? Though to be frank, when you get poking the hood and looking at the reports closely, even the ‘good’ schools have problems that should cause a parent concern – though naturally individual experience will vary.
Looking at some of the EC faculty webpages, this guy is not on a par with them from a scholarly point of view.
Again, maybe he’s a great leader, but trying to pretend he is a highly respected scholar is incomprehensible.
Good one. LOL!
An accomplished scholar is one thing and a highly regarded and respected academic is another… Continue enjoying betting down anything good in this country you self righteous …. !
You’re hysterical. A highly regarded and respected academic is someone who is above an entry-rank title of assistant professor by definition.
Again, he may be a fantastic administrator and good administrators do not have to be respected scholars.
If you didn’t try so hard to inflate and fabricate, then people would not feel the need to correct your ridiculous assumptions.
I’m glad I can entertain you. Again he is highly regarded academic both with QU and within Qatar larger community … If you feel the bar for a highly regarded Qatari academic is too low, so be it.. It’s your view which really amount to nothing.. As for inflating and fabricating my ridiculous assumptions… I’m glad my comments give you and other a hard on and always in happy to be corrected or not
Hardly an unknown University – you obviously have very little knowledge in the matter. Besides the guy has been promoted, be happy for him. I don’t know him but give him a chance, be nice and you never know…..
Dr. Al-Derham won the best paper of the year in ASCE Journal of Construction Engineering and Management. Btw it’s an American journal that includes papers from all the world! So yea he qualifies as a respected academic
Not familiar with it. What’s the impact factor?
Strange that online this man gets the credit, and Al Derham is just described as being a collaborator. Being a co-author and being the winner of best paper are two very, very different things.
Associate Professor Khaled El-Rayes has been selected to receive the Best Journal Paper Award of 2009 from the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Journal of Construction Engineering and Management. The paper, co-written with Wallied Orabi, Ahmed B. Senouci and Hassan Al-Derham, is entitled, “Optimizing Postdisaster Reconstruction Planning for Damaged Transportation Networks.”
http://cee.illinois.edu/node/1259
Impact factor is 0.87
I wish him the best but I’m curious as to why he is only an Assistant Professor. Do you know anything about his research and performance?
There was a lady who told it as it was.
Not sure how prestigious this is, but QU, under Sheikha Abdulla Al-Misnad, has just achieved membership of the United Nations (UN) Academic Impact. Hopefully the following will be done in practice. Academic Impact is informed by a commitment to support and advance ten basic principles:
A commitment to the principles inherent in the United Nations Charter as values that education seeks to promote and help fulfill;
A commitment to human rights, among them freedom of inquiry, opinion, and speech;
A commitment to educational opportunity for all people regardless of gender, race, religion or ethnicity;
A commitment to the opportunity for every interested individual to acquire the skills and knowledge necessary for the pursuit of higher education;
A commitment to building capacity in higher education systems across the world;
A commitment to encouraging global citizenship through education;
A commitment to advancing peace and conflict resolution through education;
A commitment to addressing issues of poverty through education;
A commitment to promoting sustainability through education;
A commitment to promoting inter-cultural dialogue and understanding, and the “unlearning” of intolerance, through education.
yet the ranking under her management didn’t improve . what a waste for 10 yrs she been there . (or was it more, poor students )
I agree with qatari on this, there is alot of money wasted on untalented “so called professionals” who come and don’t know what to do and need training and go on courses.
She will be missed.
Frankly speaking if the “argument” skills of a certain person opposing Dr. Sheikha’s tenure and accomplishments are representative of a QU student or graduate, the proof of their poor standards is on display here for all to see.
I know it wasn’t popular to try to raise standards across the board at QU, especially in this age where people seem to feel everyone is entitled to a university degree, regardless of ability to actually perform and earn it. But a nation isn’t improved by accepting poor outcomes when it comes to education. If you want QU and its students to be able to compete, you need to raise the bar and push them to achieve. They ARE capable; I’ve seen it firsthand.
Dr. Al-Misnad is going to be missed. I hope the new president will continue to improve Qatar University, although I doubt that anyone would be able to do what she did. I am an alumni of Qatar University and I can say that she revolutionized university education in Qatar and made this university for the best of the best of students especially from 2003 to 2012 before going back to teaching in Arabic. Qatar University is the best Arab university in my opinion. I met people who studied in different Arab countries and I found that even if their universities achieved higher numbers, they were of mediocre level because they received a classic education that depends in memorizing, rather than thinking and developing personal opinions, and research.
I am very proud of my university and contrary to popular opinions, I enjoyed every minute of my education there. Also, I think that anyone who hates this university hates it because it provides an education that is higher than their level, they want Qatar University to be like other Arab universities, very easy and provides education for undeserving people who lack basic standard requirements. in QU you have to work really hard to get good grades, but haters do not want that, and as Dr. Al-Misnad said, they feel entitled, they feel like it is their right to get into this university and succeed without doing the effort. this is my opinion as I witnessed it first hand during my time at QU, and through several discussions with students there and outside.
Respect to Dr. Sheikha Al Misnad