Tribune News Network
Doha
Some 20 years after Qatar Academy Doha (QAD) – part of Qatar Foundation’s Pre-University Education – received its International Baccalaureate (IB) accreditation, its Diploma Programme (DP) results remain impressively high, with students going on to study at prestigious universities all over the world.
The results of the 2018-2019 academic year showed that 64 of QAD’s students received an average score of 30 points, which, according to the IB statistics, is higher than the global average.
Zaid Khattab, who with a total of 41 points received the highest score in all subjects in 2019, as well as an award in Mathematics and Language Acquisition, said, "I enjoyed my experience at Qatar Academy Doha studying the IB programme, as it fostered independent critical thinking.”
Afrah Shibu, valedictorian of her graduating class in 2016, scored a perfect 45 in her IBDP.
She is now studying Medicine at the University of Oxford in England. "I am very proud to say I graduated from Qatar Academy Doha with an IB diploma - even today, in my fourth year at the University of Oxford, I am reaping the benefits of my time there,” she said.
"The IB programme enables us to perfect our time management skills since we had to balance a number of subjects and tasks. This ability is crucial in university where we need to act independently. This was reinforced by my wonderful teachers, each of whom brought a unique, refreshing perspective to their subject, encouraging my own interests and ultimately pushing me to pursue a career in medicine,” she added.
Sarah al Ani graduated from QAD in 2016 and is currently studying Education at McGill University in Canada.
She said, "I feel that completing the IB diploma helped me prepare for what university was going to throw at me as I was able to handle large workloads with commitments such as the extended essay, multiple IA’s and other class assignments.
"Coming to McGill University, I had to independently keep track of all my courses and stay on top of all the lectures, which was a struggle at first, as some of my class sizes weren’t as I had expected, with some having as many as 600 students. That being said, I am currently in my fourth year, and I can easily say that Qatar Academy Doha and the IB helped me practise and apply the organisational skills that have helped me get to the point I am today.”
She added, "By having international teachers that came from different backgrounds and teaching philosophies, I was able to gain multiple skills, which I still use today in my everyday life and in my education degree. Having the opportunity to share each of my teacher’s distinctive theories with future students is both an honour and a joy.”
Tanya Shibu graduated from QAD in 2018, after completing the Primary Years Programme, the Middle Years Programme and the DP at QAD.
Tanya is now studying Electrical Engineering at Yale University in the US.
She explained how, while the IB system is very challenging, it helped her become a more capable independent learner and to develop skills and attitudes that are helping her through college.
"The quality required of IB assignments provides incredible preparation for university level coursework, which made the school-to-university transition much easier. During my time in QAD, sport and music always helped me manage the stress of school, and I loved having the opportunity to pursue my passions outside the classroom,” Tanya said.
Ahmed Yasser al Naimi, who received the Best Student Award in 2019, is now studying International Relations at King’s College London in England.
"I am very proud to have graduated from QAD’s IBDP. It was a great experience – I worked hard to achieve results; however, this did not prevent me from participating in extracurricular activities.”
After university, Ahmed hopes to serve Qatar, after incorporating everything he has learnt over the years at QAD and beyond.
Doha
Some 20 years after Qatar Academy Doha (QAD) – part of Qatar Foundation’s Pre-University Education – received its International Baccalaureate (IB) accreditation, its Diploma Programme (DP) results remain impressively high, with students going on to study at prestigious universities all over the world.
The results of the 2018-2019 academic year showed that 64 of QAD’s students received an average score of 30 points, which, according to the IB statistics, is higher than the global average.
Zaid Khattab, who with a total of 41 points received the highest score in all subjects in 2019, as well as an award in Mathematics and Language Acquisition, said, "I enjoyed my experience at Qatar Academy Doha studying the IB programme, as it fostered independent critical thinking.”
Afrah Shibu, valedictorian of her graduating class in 2016, scored a perfect 45 in her IBDP.
She is now studying Medicine at the University of Oxford in England. "I am very proud to say I graduated from Qatar Academy Doha with an IB diploma - even today, in my fourth year at the University of Oxford, I am reaping the benefits of my time there,” she said.
"The IB programme enables us to perfect our time management skills since we had to balance a number of subjects and tasks. This ability is crucial in university where we need to act independently. This was reinforced by my wonderful teachers, each of whom brought a unique, refreshing perspective to their subject, encouraging my own interests and ultimately pushing me to pursue a career in medicine,” she added.
Sarah al Ani graduated from QAD in 2016 and is currently studying Education at McGill University in Canada.
She said, "I feel that completing the IB diploma helped me prepare for what university was going to throw at me as I was able to handle large workloads with commitments such as the extended essay, multiple IA’s and other class assignments.
"Coming to McGill University, I had to independently keep track of all my courses and stay on top of all the lectures, which was a struggle at first, as some of my class sizes weren’t as I had expected, with some having as many as 600 students. That being said, I am currently in my fourth year, and I can easily say that Qatar Academy Doha and the IB helped me practise and apply the organisational skills that have helped me get to the point I am today.”
She added, "By having international teachers that came from different backgrounds and teaching philosophies, I was able to gain multiple skills, which I still use today in my everyday life and in my education degree. Having the opportunity to share each of my teacher’s distinctive theories with future students is both an honour and a joy.”
Tanya Shibu graduated from QAD in 2018, after completing the Primary Years Programme, the Middle Years Programme and the DP at QAD.
Tanya is now studying Electrical Engineering at Yale University in the US.
She explained how, while the IB system is very challenging, it helped her become a more capable independent learner and to develop skills and attitudes that are helping her through college.
"The quality required of IB assignments provides incredible preparation for university level coursework, which made the school-to-university transition much easier. During my time in QAD, sport and music always helped me manage the stress of school, and I loved having the opportunity to pursue my passions outside the classroom,” Tanya said.
Ahmed Yasser al Naimi, who received the Best Student Award in 2019, is now studying International Relations at King’s College London in England.
"I am very proud to have graduated from QAD’s IBDP. It was a great experience – I worked hard to achieve results; however, this did not prevent me from participating in extracurricular activities.”
After university, Ahmed hopes to serve Qatar, after incorporating everything he has learnt over the years at QAD and beyond.