Student Thesis Spotlight: Yasser Albarakat
Yasser Albarakat, a senior KGSP student at the University of Colorado Boulder, recently completed his thesis and defended his dissertation on ‘Two-Photon Polymerization of Soft Matter Composites’. His thesis summarizes the results of one-and-a-half years of research under the supervision of Ivan Smalyukh, Associate Professor of Physics. Yasser joined the Smalyukh Group in Fall 2015 and received a research grant from the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) at the University of Colorado Boulder during the summer of his junior year.
Yasser presenting his research at a Poster Fair at the University of Colorado Boulder
Yasser defending his honor’s thesis
STUDENT PROFILE
KGSP students represent the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s future scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs, and thought-leaders. As both individuals and as a community, they reflect the KAUST mission of driving scientific discovery through excellence in education and cutting-edge research, and share a commitment to fostering innovation, economic development, and social prosperity throughout the Kingdom and the world.
ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS
Selection to the KGSP is extremely competitive, and currently by invitation only. Successful applicants are Saudi Arabian students in their final year of high school who demonstrate impressive academic credentials within STEM fields, meaningful extra-curricular achievements, and who share the KAUST ethos of continuous discovery. Learn more here.
KGSP ADMINISTRATION
The KGSP is administered by the Office of Strategic National Advancement at KAUST, under the direction of Vice President & Senior Associate to the President, Dr. Najah Ashry. Strategic National Advancement directs the university's strategy to serve Saudi Arabia's transformational priorities: Through initiatives in young talent and Saudi workforce development, social responsibility, and national engagement, the Office contributes to a thriving innovation ecosystem by building knowledge capacity, creating opportunities, and strengthening impact.
—King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al Saud
1924 – 2015