Graduates from QF’s QAS look forward to pursuing their dreams at Education City

Despite the unusual situation that this year’s graduates are experiencing amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, and not being able to celebrate their success and achievements with each other, they still look to the future with a lot of hope.

Graduates from Qatar Academy Sidra, part of Qatar Foundation’s (QF) Pre-University Education, share their memories, experiences, and future aspirations as they plan to chase their dreams inside QF’s unique environment of education, where world-class international partner universities stand alongside schools in the same location.

Natasha Fernandes, an Indian student, has had a passion for the Arts since a young age, and at Qatar Academy Sidra (QAS) was able to realize her abilities.

“I joined QAS in 2018. I am very grateful for Qatar Foundation for giving me the opportunity to study at an International Baccalaureate school on a full scholarship, which was based on my academic performance and my co-curricular activities, because I am very passionate about art and design.

“The curriculum in QAS was very versatile, and I was very fortunate to study visual arts as a subject which I did not have in my old school. I loved the subject and excelled in it, and this really helped me to perform to the best of my ability,” Natasha said.

For Natasha, graduating during this unique time was a challenge, but she was able to turn this challenge into a positive experience.

“Our school encourages us to self-learn, so when the pandemic hit Qatar, and we had start using the online learning system, we were kind of prepared for it and it was not as difficult as it could have been.

“However, for some subjects – such as visual arts – some exhibition pieces were not doable through a screen, and I had to do it independently – without a team. Despite how challenging that was, I took it positively as it taught me how to think outside the box and create new ways of doing things.”

Recently, Natasha was accepted at Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar, a QF partner university, and she is looking forward to starting her new educational journey at Education City in the fall of 2020 with a major in graphic design.

“I have been in the QF environment for two years now, and it is truly inspiring and welcoming, and offers a lot of opportunities. I am extremely proud of the skills I have gained, and how people at QF go to lengths to make sure that we, as students, reach our maximum potential,” she said.

Another student from QAS – Marya Taj Muhammed Khan, who joined QAS in 2018 – was accepted at another QF partner university, Georgetown University in Qatar. The Pakistani student described how moving from school to university is normally challenging, but has been especially difficult in the current environment. However, the support she is receiving from QF and her school is making the transition easier.

“I believe that the way that schools and universities at Qatar Foundation handled this situation has had an impact on protecting our future as graduates and as new college students,” Marya said.

Marya is going to major in international politics, and she hopes that by specializing in this field, she will be able to make a positive impact in the world.

“Nobody ever thought that something like COVID-19 would ever happen and disrupt the world. It is now time for us, as the new generation, to be wise and think about the measures we need to put in place for the future.

“We should learn the lessons and focus on establishing policies and making changes to help and protect the most vulnerable people in the society,” Marya explained.