Qatar career development center wraps up summer career camp 2018

Doha, Qatar: Qatar Career Development Center (QCDC), a member of Qatar Foundation (QF), has wrapped up the fifth edition of its Summer Career Camp, which saw around 50 secondary school students take part.

The camp, which ran from July 1-12 at the Education City Student Center, offered students a stimulating and educational environment designed to equip them with the skills and knowledge necessary to make informed academic and career decisions.

Mrs. Machaille Al-Naimi, President of Community Development, QF, attended the final day of the camp and congratulated students on their participation in the program’s activities, while wishing them success in their academic and professional choices.

Urging participants to promote a culture of career guidance, Al-Naimi said: “You are the ambassadors of the future, and we count on you to assist your colleagues in choosing the appropriate academic and career paths that will shape their lives.

“On this occasion, I would like to assure you that QCDC and QF will always stand by you, the youth, ready to support you on your journey.”

The two-week camp featured a variety of activities and educational programs, as well as stimulating workshops designed to provide students with practical skills and knowledge to help them plan their academic and career paths.

During the camp, students were introduced to QCDC’s Career Advising System (CAS), which features diverse and innovative components, including psychometric and personality assessment tools, to help students identify the most appropriate academic and career paths in line with the future needs of Qatar. As part of the camp, Stenden Qatar University of Applied Sciences (Stenden Qatar) conducted a day-long training session for students, teaching them a range of life skills designed to prepare them for university, in addition to offering practical advice for use when traveling for study programs abroad.

Commenting on the camp’s fifth edition, Mr. Abdulla Al Mansoori, Director, QCDC, said: "I am pleased that the fifth edition of the Summer Career Camp has had a strong impact on the lives of these students.

“Over the last two weeks, they participated in an intensive program of activities that provided them with insight into the professional world, enabling them to make well-informed academic and career choices. At QCDC, we motivate young participants to believe in their abilities, explore their interests and pursue their ambitions in line with the aspirations and objectives of the job market in Qatar.”

The camp featured site visits and job-shadowing programs at leading organizations in Qatar, providing participants with real-world insight into workplace environments with the aim of helping them to match their abilities and skills with various career choices. The site visits also provided an opportunity for students to familiarize themselves with the dynamics of Qatar’s labor market across various industries, and the future needs of the nation.

Six days were dedicated to site visits at institutions operating across various sectors in Qatar. These included a ‘Medical Day’ sponsored by Hamad Medical Corporation; an ‘Agriculture Day’ sponsored by the Qur’anic Botanic Garden, a member of QF; an ‘Engineering Day’ jointly sponsored by College of the North Atlantic – Qatar and Msheireb Properties; a ‘Banking Day’ sponsored by Qatar National Bank; a ‘Media Day’ sponsored by Northwestern University in Qatar, a QF partner university; and a ‘Transport Day’ sponsored by Qatar Airways.

Sharifa Mohamed Al-Qasimi, one of the participating students, said the camp deepened her understanding of the labor market, and provided insight into the educational and career opportunities that best align with her skills and abilities.

“The Summer Career Camp offered me new experiences and the opportunity to make new friends, but most importantly, I gained a better understanding of chemical engineering, the major I want to study and pursue in the future,” she said. “As well as getting a glimpse into the realities of a workplace, I learned more about the nature of work in this specialty and even had the chance to try my hand at operating factory machines.”

The final day of the camp featured an introductory session on universities in Qatar, such as QF partner universities Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar and Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar; Qatar University; and Stenden Qatar. Representatives of these universities provided students with an overview of their academic programs, admission processes, and entry requirements, designed to help students make informed academic decisions and prepare them for university life.

All students who completed the program were awarded participation certificates.

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Qatar Career Development Center - Your Future in Your Hands

Qatar Career Development Center (QCDC), a member of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, formerly known as Qatar Career Fair (QCF), aims to be the country’s beacon for career guidance, preparing the nation’s young human capital to respond to the requirements of the QNV 2030, by instilling career guidance within Qatar’s socio-economic culture.

QCDC supports Qatari capacity building and empowers youth to better plan their career paths in line with their potential and the future needs of Qatar’s labor market. It also equips parents and career guidance and development practitioners with career guidance knowledge and information needed so they may best advise and guide their children and students.

QCDC also aims to enrich and support career guidance policy making and practices by contributing to quality career literature, insights and consulting as well as offering high quality career services by professional experts.

Qatar Foundation – Unlocking Human Potential

Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF) is a non-profit organization that supports Qatar on its journey to becoming a diversified and sustainable economy. QF strives to serve the people of Qatar and beyond by providing specialized programs across its innovation-focused ecosystem of education, research and development, and community development.

QF was founded in 1995 by His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Father Emir, and Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, who shared the vision to provide Qatar with quality education. Today, QF’s world-class education system offers lifelong learning opportunities to community members as young as six months through to doctoral level, enabling graduates to thrive in a global environment and contribute to the nation’s development.

QF is also creating a multidisciplinary innovation hub in Qatar, where homegrown researchers are working to address local and global research and development challenges. By promoting a culture of lifelong learning and fostering social engagement through programs that embody Qatari culture, QF is committed to empowering the local community and contributing to a better world for all.

For a complete list of QF’s initiatives and projects, visit http://www.qf.org.qa 

© Press Release 2018