Georgetown University: School of Foreign Service in Qatar

Doha, Qatar -The School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-Qatar) organized a visit to Education City for the participants in its Fourth Annual Model United Nations Conference (MUN). The visit aimed at introducing high school students to university life.

After a day full of diplomatic simulations in MUN committee sessions, high school students from around the world reconvened on the campus of Education City, in order to sample college life here in Qatar.

During the visit, students had the opportunity to learn more about Qatar Foundation and the branch campuses of American universities located in Education City, including Carnegie Melon University in Qatar (CMUQ), Northwestern University in Qatar (NUQ), Texas A&M University at Qatar (TAMUQ), Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar (VCUQ) and Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar (WCMCQ).

“We wanted to take this chance to expose the students to Education City. The high school students did not only come to Qatar because of their interest in international relations, they came here to learn,” said Liz Kepferle, the Director of Admissions at SFS-Qatar.

Professors from the six branch campuses gave sample lectures across a variety of disciplines. Students had the opportunity to participate in 45-minute lectures on topics ranging from Comparative Arabic Thought, or Politics and Design, all the way to the Water Crisis in the 21st Century and the Current Financial Crisis.

"The students' questions creatively expanded upon my lecture by looking towards fresh, original solutions to the problems I had highlighted," said Mark Farha, a Middle East politics professor at Georgetown, who gave a sample lecture on the United Nations and the Middle East.

After the lectures, students had the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational activities. They tested their global knowledge in Georgetown’s Geography Quiz Bowl and their biology knowledge in a quiz organized by WCMCQ students. They experienced reporting and camera work in a simulation organized by NUQ. They also drafted a marketing plan in a simulation organized by CMUQ, and enjoyed engineering activities which TAMUQ organized.

Since the participating high school students are close to their final year of school, additional activities were planned to help students in planning for their university education. Admissions experts from across Education City gave presentations to help students in their career planning and university application. “We wanted to help them make informed decisions about career and university choices,” Kepferle said.

The visit was concluded with an international buffet dinner where students sampled regional specialties from around the world.


########
Note for the editors
Press is invited to visit sessions in action on the following dates:
- Committee Sessions on Sunday, 1 February 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
- Diplomatic Lunch and Closing Ceremony on Sunday, 1 February 12:00 noon - 2:00 p.m.

Please visit SFS-Qatar MUN for more information.