Speaker of the Shura Council H E Hassan bin Abdulla Al Ghanim (fourth right); Minister of Environment and Climate Change H E Dr. Abdullah bin Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Subaie (second right); Minister Of Education And Higher Education H E Buthaina bint Ali Al Jabr Al Nuaimi (fifth right); Minister of Social Development and Family H E Maryam bint Ali bin Nasser Al Misnad (first right); Vice-Chairperson and CEO of Qatar Foundation and Chairperson of HBKU Board of Trustees, H E Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani (third right); and other dignitaries at the HBKU Class of 2024 graduation ceremony held yesterday.
Doha, Qatar: Speaker of the Shura Council H E Hassan bin Abdulla Al Ghanim, and Vice Chairperson and CEO of Qatar Foundation (QF) and Chairperson of HBKU Board of Trustees H E Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani witnessed graduation ceremony for Hamad Bin Khalifa University's Class of 2024 yesterday.
Ministers, officials, HBKU’s senior leadership and deans of its six colleges, members of the university’s staff and faculty, and the families and friends of the graduates also attended the graduation, held at the Qatar National Convention Centre.
HBKU awarded degrees to 247 students including 142 female and 105 male graduates — 61 of which were Qatari citizens.
HBKU President Dr. Ahmad M. Hasnah said: “The challenges ahead of you are great, yet the hope we have in you matches these challenges. Set ambitious goals and let your aspirations transcend personal achievements, for history only remembers those with altruistic hands and those whose influence goes beyond individual pursuits”.
In their remarks, the keynote speaker, Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah, Rector of the University of Glasgow, said: “What we have learned from the war in Gaza is that in order to erase a people, you must first start with their universities. And to erase a nation, you must end the education process.”
Speaking to his peers, the student speaker, Abdulrahman Al Shafi, a graduate from the Master of Public Policy programme, said: “We stand ready to embark on our new journey with determination and ambition while striving to realize our aspirations and uplift our societies. With the theme of our graduation ceremony being “Education for Peace, Education for Humanity” we move forward today with the firm belief that education is the most potent catalyst for the change we seek in our world.”
The graduates completed programs from the university’s six colleges: the College of Islamic Studies (CIS), College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS), College of Science and Engineering (CSE), College of Law (CL), College of Health and Life Sciences (CHLS), and the College of Public Policy (CPP). Its 41 academic programmes span multiple disciplines aligning with five focus areas: Precision Health, Artificial Intelligence, Progressive Education, Sustainability, and Social Progress.
This year’s graduation ceremony also featured the HBKU Excellence Awards, which acknowledge remarkable achievements by HBKU faculty. H E Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani presented the awards onstage in three categories: the Research Excellence Award; the Teaching Excellence Award; and the Service Excellence Award.
Dr. Amine Bermak, Professor and Associate Dean, CSE, and Dr. Ahmet Aysan, Professor, CIS, were both named recipients of the Research Excellence Award. Dr. Georgios Dimitropoulos, Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, CL, was honoured with the Teaching Excellence Award, and Dr. Evren Tok, Associate Dean of Community Engagement and Associate Professor, CPP, was presented with the Service Excellence Award.
Noting the importance of the Awards, Dr. Michael Benedik, Provost, HBKU, said: “Our award recipients embody the commitment all of our faculty have towards academic excellence in their scholarly work, dedication to our students and their intellectual development, and the significant impact our faculty have in enhancing the university, our local community and their academic disciplines. My heartfelt congratulations to each of this year’s recipients.”
