WCMC-Q congratulates 40 Pre-Medical Program students at completion ceremony

May, 2012

Two years of intensive medical studies came to an impressive conclusion for 40 students in the Pre-Medical Program when Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar (WCMC-Q) hosted the annual program completion ceremony.

Dr. Javaid Sheikh, Dean of WCMC-Q, congratulated the students who completed the course and now have the opportunity to continue either with the Medical Program or choose to pursue new directions.

“This ceremony is a tribute to our diversity as an institution and more than half of our students make their home in Qatar. There are 14 different nationalities in this group and they speak seven different languages. For each of you, this has been a significant achievement and we wish you well for the future. We are all very proud of you,” Dr. Sheikh said.

For the students who will continue on to the Medical Program, Dr. Sheikh cautioned there was a long and busy road ahead with expert help along the way. For those who choose alternate pathways, there is a pilot program underway in association with Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar that leads to a bachelor’s degree in biology after which there is another opportunity to take MCAT and come back to WCMC-Q. In addition, other options will be put in place over the next few years.

“There will be joint associations with Texas A&M in Qatar and other institutions and there will also be opportunities for graduate studies,” said Dr. Sheikh. “As Hamad Bin Khalifa University comes on board, they will also be offering master’s and PhD programs at different institutions.”

He also confirmed that discussions are also underway with Johns Hopkins University for a Master’s in Public Health for students who wish to choose alternative options in healthcare leadership.

For the medical students, Dr. Sheikh promised the highest level of clinical training and facilities as well as multiple options at the end of which students will receive their degree from Cornell University and have access to joint partners at Hamad Medical Corporation and Sidra Medical and Research Center, which will become a regional center of excellence in women’s and children’s health.

The Associate Dean for Pre-Medical Education, Dr. Marco Ameduri, congratulated the students for completing a challenging course of study over the past two years and urged students to maintain a curiosity for life-long learning.

“You have demonstrated your curiosity by working hard to learn the sciences with all the beautiful statements they make about natural phenomena, and to practice the humanities, which give context and meaning to your knowledge and to your powers of reflection, and all this at a time when it might have been tempting for you to focus only on your daily tasks to get the grades. My advice to you is to keep your intellectual interests as broad as you have kept them so far, and you won’t just be doctors, but you’ll be leaders and guides,” Dr. Ameduri said.