KGSP Students Selected for Prestigious Qimam Fellowship
KGSP is proud to congratulate Saleem Aldajani, 2019 graduate of MIT, and Omar Alhazzaa, a rising junior at the University of Michigan- Ann Arbor, for their selection and participation in the Qimam Fellowship in Riyadh this summer.
The Qimam Fellowship was founded in 2018 by McKinsey and Company and Dr. Annas Abedin, a McKinsey alumnus and entrepreneur. The 12-day program is designed to “to identify, develop, and empower the most promising and distinguished university students in and from Saudi Arabia to achieve their full potential” by providing recipients with access to and training with 200 leaders from over 25 national and international companies within both the public and private sectors. Through specialized mentorship and training, Qimam facilitates a broad network of talent and collaboration as an investment towards greater growth in the Kingdom; at the conclusion of the fellowship, recipients gain membership to the Qimam Alumni Network, and have their profiles shared with leading HR managers and executives in Saudi Arabia.
In its inaugural year, this highly competitive program selected only 50 students from more than 13,000 applicants—one of whom was Mohammed Almugren, a KGSP and KAUST alumnus. The prestige of the Fellowship only grew in its second year, with over 18,000 applicants and just a three percent acceptance rate.
After the completion of this prestigious program in summer 2019, Saleem will be matriculating to KAUST to pursue a PhD in Material Science and Engineering. Omar will next attend a specialized enrichment program through a partnership with KAUST and the STRATE School of Design before returning to the US to continue his undergraduate coursework in Computer Engineering.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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—King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al Saud
1924 – 2015
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