Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q) Class of 2022 graduates have just finished their celebrations and remain committed to accomplishing great things in their communities.
Bothaina Jassim Hamad al-Thani, one of the 41 Qatari students in this year’s cohort of 87 graduates, majoring in International Economics with a minor in Government, excelled in her courses and research efforts, winning honours in her major for a paper exploring the rise of private tutoring in Qatar.
“I decided to study the determinants of demand for private tutoring in Qatar because the phenomenon has changed greatly in my lifetime. I wanted to add to the body of knowledge on a global phenomenon, understudied in Qatar.”
Even with the added responsibilities of preparing to become a new mom, Bothaina graduated magna cum laude, a Latin honour of great distinction, and was awarded the International Economics Outstanding Student Award at GU-Q’s annual Tropaia senior award ceremony.
International Politics major and honours graduate, Syed Taha Kaleem’s undergraduate studies were centred around the religious dimension of political conflicts, an area of study he has experienced first hand as a Kashmiri. When in High School, a local lecture delivered by a GU-Q professor introduced Syed Taha to the Qatar campus. That decision put him on a path of scholarly exploration that has ended with his acceptance into Brandeis University’s PhD programme in socio-cultural anthropology straight from his undergraduate studies.
Earning a distinguished 2021 Berkley Centre-Pulitzer Centre international reporting fellowship in his junior year, Syed Taha returned to Kashmir to study the connection between Sufi shrines, conflict resolution, and the newly added complications of the pandemic. “I decided to go into this project without preconceived conclusions, letting the field work tell the story instead,” he said, producing journalistic reports that aim to capture the complexities of issues that are often misreported or underrepresented.
A global perspective is also what drew Korean international student Sooin Jessica Choi to pursue a Georgetown degree in Culture and Politics in a region of the world she only knew through news headlines. “I’ve always wanted to attend Georgetown. And when I realised they had a campus in the Middle East, I applied.”
Throughout her studies, she continued to serve as a bridge between her home country and Qatar by working at a Korean firm that designed leadership training courses for senior professionals in the GCC.
A natural ambassador, Sooin tutored writing and geography to her peers, and co-founded a running club to inspire students, professors, and staff to enjoy the benefits of exercise no matter their skill level.
Sooin graduated early, and is currently pursuing a Master's in Urban and Regional Planning at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, and cites her CULP training as foundational to her research in creating knowledge economies by empowering local and migrant communities.
“I decided to study the determinants of demand for private tutoring in Qatar because the phenomenon has changed greatly in my lifetime. I wanted to add to the body of knowledge on a global phenomenon, understudied in Qatar.”
Even with the added responsibilities of preparing to become a new mom, Bothaina graduated magna cum laude, a Latin honour of great distinction, and was awarded the International Economics Outstanding Student Award at GU-Q’s annual Tropaia senior award ceremony.
International Politics major and honours graduate, Syed Taha Kaleem’s undergraduate studies were centred around the religious dimension of political conflicts, an area of study he has experienced first hand as a Kashmiri. When in High School, a local lecture delivered by a GU-Q professor introduced Syed Taha to the Qatar campus. That decision put him on a path of scholarly exploration that has ended with his acceptance into Brandeis University’s PhD programme in socio-cultural anthropology straight from his undergraduate studies.
Earning a distinguished 2021 Berkley Centre-Pulitzer Centre international reporting fellowship in his junior year, Syed Taha returned to Kashmir to study the connection between Sufi shrines, conflict resolution, and the newly added complications of the pandemic. “I decided to go into this project without preconceived conclusions, letting the field work tell the story instead,” he said, producing journalistic reports that aim to capture the complexities of issues that are often misreported or underrepresented.
A global perspective is also what drew Korean international student Sooin Jessica Choi to pursue a Georgetown degree in Culture and Politics in a region of the world she only knew through news headlines. “I’ve always wanted to attend Georgetown. And when I realised they had a campus in the Middle East, I applied.”
Throughout her studies, she continued to serve as a bridge between her home country and Qatar by working at a Korean firm that designed leadership training courses for senior professionals in the GCC.
A natural ambassador, Sooin tutored writing and geography to her peers, and co-founded a running club to inspire students, professors, and staff to enjoy the benefits of exercise no matter their skill level.
Sooin graduated early, and is currently pursuing a Master's in Urban and Regional Planning at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, and cites her CULP training as foundational to her research in creating knowledge economies by empowering local and migrant communities.
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