What happens when you bring eight Western universities to a small Middle Eastern country?

For the past 25 years, students in Qatar have been studying in a city where the iconic landmarks are some of the world’s top universities from New York, Paris, Chicago, London, Washington, DC, and more.

What started with a single school has transformed into Qatar Foundation’s (QF’s) ‘Education City,’ a 12 square kilometer urban development housing various education and research institutes.

This model was created when QF’s founders developed a plan for Qatar’s future that would provide a greater choice in education, research, and community development. The organization partnered with Georgetown, Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, Northwestern, Texas A&M, Virginia Commonwealth, HEC Paris, and University College London to offer their flagship programs in Doha.

In 2010, QF established Hamad Bin Khalifa University, a homegrown research university that offers customized programs catered to the needs of the region. While they are supported by QF, all the universities enjoy complete academic freedom and authority over their curricula and the recruitment of students, faculty, and staff.

The Education City Model

At Education City, students have a chance to experience multiple universities during their academic journey. “One of the best parts of being with QF is that they always urge us to be experimental. They want us to do things that we might not be able to do on our Washington campus,” said Brendan Hill, Senior Associate Dean for Students at Georgetown University in Qatar. One example: Georgetown’s partnership with Northwestern on a combined minor in Media and Politics, capitalizing on the respective strengths of each school.

Such joint programs are only one aspect of this unique model. Enrolled students can cross-register at other schools, conduct research with their faculty members, or even start entrepreneurial initiatives with them.

They can also study abroad at their respective university’s main campus or participate in fully funded learning trips and residencies in all corners of the globe.

“When Education City was first conceived, its vision was to provide world-class education to the people of Qatar. But over the past 25 years, this project has achieved beyond that goal, and the result is an academic hub with unique opportunities and initiatives,” said Omran Al-Kuwari, CEO of Qatar Foundation International. “Collaborations between some of the world’s best institutions are happening right here in Doha.”

Education City universities are within walking distance of one another and cater to more than 3,000 students every year. Housed in built-for-purpose campuses, they offer programs in media, international affairs, business, computer science, medicine, engineering, cultural heritage, knowledge management, and arts.

Part of something greater

While studying at QF, students can take advantage of QF’s offerings in research and community development. “Education is an integral part of our mission, but, for us, it’s the first step to help us develop the country’s full potential,” says Dr Richard O’Kennedy, QF’s Vice President for Research, Development and Innovation (RDI). “These students are part of a larger ecosystem at QF that includes scholars, researchers, and innovators generating significant achievements in key areas including the social sciences, healthcare, IT, the environment, and food security with associated commercial opportunities”

Some of those opportunities for students include the chance to turn their entrepreneurial ideas into businesses through QF’s technology hub, Qatar Science & Technology Park, or turn their curiosities into fully funded research projects via any of the institutes based in Education City. Moreover, students get to participate in some of the world’s leading conferences, such as the World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) and the World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH).

As Qatar continues to fast track large-scale developments and prepare for its future needs, QF is continuing to expand the offerings at Education City.