Texas A&M University at Qatar (Tamuq), a Qatar Foundation partner university, celebrated the research and scholarly work of its graduate students during the recent Graduate Research Forum.
The event provided a platform for doctoral and master’s students pursuing engineering degrees at the university to showcase their research with industry representatives, faculty, and other graduate students.
Students across the four engineering disciplines — chemical engineering, electrical and computer engineering, mechanical engineering and petroleum engineering — participated in a technical presentation competition as well as the Three Minute thesis (3MT) competition, which challenges students to present their thesis and its significance in less than three minutes. Presentations were judged by Tamuq faculty members and representatives from industry
Zurwa Khan, Ahmed Badreldin and Eisha Khaled were the first, second and third-place winners for the Oral Presentation competition. Jack Altwal came first in the 3MT competition and Malek Helali was the runner-up. Winners of the 3MT competition will go on to represent Tamuq in the national 3MT competition and the Mena region 3MT competition.
Talking about her experience, Helali said: “I've had a very enriching experience participating in the 3MT competition. I will be defending my master’s thesis soon and the exercise of concentrating two years’ worth of research in three minutes was both expectedly challenging and unexpectedly valuable as a mental process. The time constraint pushed me towards structuring my presentation in a very systematic way that sounds like a comprehensive journey illustrating a much broader outlook on the value and significance of my work. I think the competition was a great opportunity to exercise my public speaking skills, but it also allowed me to learn outlining my work in a concise and comprehensive manner which is a technique I will be practicing more in the future.”
The event was organised by the Graduate Student Association (GSA), a student organisation that ensures the well-being, as well as the academic and professional development, of graduate students at Tamuq. GSA president Marwa AbdelGawad said that the event was a great success and well-received by industry representatives, our faculty and students. She said: “The main aim of the forum is to celebrate the significant research done by our graduate student body in addition to bridging the gap between us and the industry. Some of the students who presented are defending [their theses] in the coming months, and events such as the Graduate Research Forum allows them to receive constructive feedback on their research and presentation skills from different standpoints of academia and industry.”
Dr. Ioannis G. Economou, senior associate dean for academic affairs and graduate studies, explained how the event enriches graduate students. “The Graduate Research Forum is a great new initiative by Tamuq to promote research work performed by graduate students in various engineering disciplines to the wider academic and industrial communities of the State of Qatar. The students received valuable feedback from faculty and industry experts regarding their work. At the same time, industry had the chance to properly assess research work performed by graduate students in Tamuq and to recruit potential future employees.”
Dr Economou also expressed his gratitude to the main sponsors, ConocoPhillips Qatar, for its support in developing future engineering leaders in Qatar.
Todd Creeger, president of ConocoPhillips Qatar and a Class of 1986 graduate of Texas A&M’s main campus, said: “The ability to detail complex technical concepts concisely is crucial to working in our industry, and the Graduate Student Forum gives Texas A&M University at Qatar students a great opportunity to sharpen their communication skills in front of an audience of energy sector professionals. We at ConocoPhillips Qatar are proud to share our expertise and lend advice to these budding engineers as they pursue careers in our industry. “
The GSA has had a successful partnership with ConocoPhillips for several years now and this is their third event together. The GSA hopes to make this an annual event attracting more participation from the university’s growing graduate student body.
Students across the four engineering disciplines — chemical engineering, electrical and computer engineering, mechanical engineering and petroleum engineering — participated in a technical presentation competition as well as the Three Minute thesis (3MT) competition, which challenges students to present their thesis and its significance in less than three minutes. Presentations were judged by Tamuq faculty members and representatives from industry
Zurwa Khan, Ahmed Badreldin and Eisha Khaled were the first, second and third-place winners for the Oral Presentation competition. Jack Altwal came first in the 3MT competition and Malek Helali was the runner-up. Winners of the 3MT competition will go on to represent Tamuq in the national 3MT competition and the Mena region 3MT competition.
Talking about her experience, Helali said: “I've had a very enriching experience participating in the 3MT competition. I will be defending my master’s thesis soon and the exercise of concentrating two years’ worth of research in three minutes was both expectedly challenging and unexpectedly valuable as a mental process. The time constraint pushed me towards structuring my presentation in a very systematic way that sounds like a comprehensive journey illustrating a much broader outlook on the value and significance of my work. I think the competition was a great opportunity to exercise my public speaking skills, but it also allowed me to learn outlining my work in a concise and comprehensive manner which is a technique I will be practicing more in the future.”
The event was organised by the Graduate Student Association (GSA), a student organisation that ensures the well-being, as well as the academic and professional development, of graduate students at Tamuq. GSA president Marwa AbdelGawad said that the event was a great success and well-received by industry representatives, our faculty and students. She said: “The main aim of the forum is to celebrate the significant research done by our graduate student body in addition to bridging the gap between us and the industry. Some of the students who presented are defending [their theses] in the coming months, and events such as the Graduate Research Forum allows them to receive constructive feedback on their research and presentation skills from different standpoints of academia and industry.”
Dr. Ioannis G. Economou, senior associate dean for academic affairs and graduate studies, explained how the event enriches graduate students. “The Graduate Research Forum is a great new initiative by Tamuq to promote research work performed by graduate students in various engineering disciplines to the wider academic and industrial communities of the State of Qatar. The students received valuable feedback from faculty and industry experts regarding their work. At the same time, industry had the chance to properly assess research work performed by graduate students in Tamuq and to recruit potential future employees.”
Dr Economou also expressed his gratitude to the main sponsors, ConocoPhillips Qatar, for its support in developing future engineering leaders in Qatar.
Todd Creeger, president of ConocoPhillips Qatar and a Class of 1986 graduate of Texas A&M’s main campus, said: “The ability to detail complex technical concepts concisely is crucial to working in our industry, and the Graduate Student Forum gives Texas A&M University at Qatar students a great opportunity to sharpen their communication skills in front of an audience of energy sector professionals. We at ConocoPhillips Qatar are proud to share our expertise and lend advice to these budding engineers as they pursue careers in our industry. “
The GSA has had a successful partnership with ConocoPhillips for several years now and this is their third event together. The GSA hopes to make this an annual event attracting more participation from the university’s growing graduate student body.
