QU College of Pharmacy holds its first student leaders' forum

The Qatar University College of Pharmacy (QU-CPH) Student Affairs Office held the first CPH Student Leaders' Forum, involving all the student leaders in the Qatar Pharmacy Undergraduate Society (QPhUS) and the CPH Student Representative Board.

It also included a number of faculty members and staff who work closely with the students. This forum was the first-of-its-kind at the college and aimed to highlight the importance of leadership and how to be an effective leader.The forum started with a discussion on the attributes and expectations of a leader, followed by an activity entitled ‘Team Role Inventory,’ where participants assessed how each individual behaves in a team environment. Following that, a Soar (Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations and Results) analysis activity was conducted where participants were divided into groups to discuss student leadership at CPH and key priorities in terms of strengths, opportunities, aspirations and results. Groups rotated amongst the different stations based on those domains. The forum concluded with an activity related to constructive feedback.QU-CPH dean Dr Feras Alali said: “We at CPH are committed to provide opportunities for the professional development of our students. Leadership is among the soft skills we consider essential for the success of graduate pharmacist as healthcare providers. The Student Leaders' Forum was a true success due to excellent planning, organisation, engagement of faculty and being mostly student-led.”QU-CPH assistant dean for students' affairs, Dr Alla al-Awaisi said: “The College of Pharmacy student leaders are a true asset to the college and have been engaged in various initiatives and activities throughout the years. To enhance their experiences further, we organised this Student Leadership Forum aimed at CPH student leaders interested in further developing their leadership skills to become effective and successful future pharmacy leaders to contribute to advancing healthcare in Qatar and the world as per the College vision and mission.”Abrar Abdelrahman, CPH student representative board female president commented: “The first ever Student Leaders' Forum in the college allowed for exceptional communication between the students leaders from different students organisations, as well as the administrative board members in the College of Pharmacy. This will develop and improve the roles of these students organisations, enhance their leadership skills and enable them to take part in the decision-making process, which will consequently enhance the students' satisfaction toward the extracurricular events in the college.”Marwa Elshazly, QPhUS president said: “The first CPH Student Leaders' Forum was one-of-a-kind, it is crucial to understand the importance of leadership and how to be an effective leader and that was proposed by the different activities, and I am looking forward to have this forum annually.”Baleegh Abdulmajeed, CPH student representative board male president added: “It was a fruitful meeting in which our relationship with the college administration increased more, and we got to know and acquired many skills to develop the student leadership capabilities of the college.”