It was the first time HH the Emir was attending a women’s graduation ceremony at QU or any other higher education institution in Qatar. Minister for Energy and Industry HE Dr Mohamed Saleh al-Sada and Qatar Central Bank Governor HE Sheikh Abdulla Saud al-Thani were among the dignitaries present.
A total of 240 men will graduate today at a ceremony which will have Qatar Administrative Control and Transparency Authority chairman HE Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah as the guest of honour.
At yesterday’s event, 117 women graduates with GPA 3.5 and above were presented with their certificates by HH the Emir. The other graduates received their certificates from QU president Prof Sheikha Abdulla al-Misnad and the respective College Deans.
Of the total women graduates, 808 were Bachelor’s level, 10 Diplomas, 21 Masters’ and nine Doctoral. This year, Honours Programme students were the first batch on the graduation stage in QU’s history. It was also the first batch of graduating students from the Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) programme.
As the largest College in QU, College of Arts & Sciences led with 353 graduating students, followed by College of Business & Economics (176), College of Engineering (106), College of Education (78), College of Shariah & Islamic Studies (64), College of Law (17), and College of Pharmacy (14).
The 10 Diploma-level graduates were all women from College of Education. Masters’ level graduates included seven MBAs, seven M Ed in Education Leadership, four M Eng in Computing, and three M Ed in Special Education.
The nine Doctoral level graduates were all women from College of Pharmacy.
In her address, Prof al-Misnad told the students that they join a list of highly-accomplished alumni and are part of QU’s history of quality and excellence.
“We look to you as our ambassadors who will strengthen our links with the community and inspire the generation of young women who will follow in your footsteps. We wish you all the very best for a future filled with learning experiences that will heighten the knowledge and skills you gained at QU.”
Valedictorian Mai Hamad Fetais, electrical engineering major, who spoke on behalf of the women graduates of Class of 2012, thanked QU leaders, professors and parents.
“We are indeed fortunate to have been given the environment and resources at Qatar University to encourage and motivate us to do our best,” she added.
The total number of graduates in QU’s Class of 2012 is 1080, including 1034 undergraduates (808 women, 226 men); 10 Diplomas (all women); 35 Masters’ (21 women; 14 men) and 9 Doctoral (all women).
At the Bachelor’s level, College of Arts and Sciences, QU’s largest college, leads with 395 students (353 women, 42 men); followed by College of Business and Economics 238 (176 women; 62 men); College of Engineering 189 (106 women; 83 men); College of Education 87 (78 women; nine men); College of Shariah and Islamic Studies 81 (64 women; 17 men); College of Law 30 (17 women; 13 men); and College of Pharmacy 14 women students.
