The graduation ceremony at the Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q), yesterday.
DOHA: Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q) celebrated its sixth graduating class yesterday, amid hopes for exciting new beginnings and a fond farewell to Jared L Cohon, President of Carnegie Mellon.
Cohon, who will be stepping down as president in June after 16 years of service to the university, gave his final charge to the 81 students, including 24 Qataris.
“Seeing our programmes grow and thrive over the last nine years has been one of the high points of my time as president. I could not be prouder of what we have accomplished together,” Cohon said.
This year’s celebration was also marked by the first graduates in Carnegie Mellon’s Biological Sciences program. Of the six biological sciences students to receive their degrees, five received University Honors.
“It really is an honour to be one of the first graduates in biological sciences and to be a pioneer from this program. My experience at Carnegie Mellon will always be really special,” said Mei ElGindi.
Ahmad Al Salama, graduating with a bachelor of science in computer science and a recipient of the 2013 Senior Student Leadership Award was selected as class speaker. In 2011 Al Salama won Al Fikra National Business Plan Competition and as a freshman he cofounded the Qatari Student Association.
In commemoration of Carnegie Mellon’s Scottish history, the ceremony included a bagpiper dressed in full regalia as well as a performance by a brass ensemble comprising members of the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra.
Of the 81, six majored in biological sciences, 43 in business administration, 14 in computer science, and 18 in information systems. In addition to Qatar campus graduates, Leto Karatsolis-Chanikian, an architecture student who studied at the Pittsburgh (USA) campus, received her diploma during the ceremony.
THE PENINSULA
