Doha – April 5, 2022: High school students with an aptitude for the sciences spent a week experiencing life as a medical student on Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar’s (WCM-Q) Online Program. 

Thirty-seven students from 14 high schools joined the Qatar Medical Explorer Program (QMEP) session, spending a week taking part in online sessions led by WCM-Q’s expert faculty on a wide range of subjects, including biology, chemistry, pharmacology, emergency medicine and anatomy. 

The experience also included coaching to help students prepare their college applications, with sessions on writing personal statements, communication skills, interview techniques, and information about the various career paths open to students who pursue a medical degree. The high school students also had the opportunity to meet with current WCM-Q students to ask them questions, and an option to take part in simulated college interviews. On the penultimate day of the QMEP, the high school students gave presentations about a medical topic they had researched during the week. 

Ms. Noha Saleh, Director of Premedical Administration, Student Outreach, and Educational Development at WCM-Q said: “The Qatar Medical Explorer Program gives high school students a fantastic opportunity to explore careers in medicine and to learn about the elite standard of medical education offered by WCM-Q. We were extremely pleased by the level of commitment, intellectual curiosity and maturity of the students who took part and we hope that many of them will choose to apply to join us at WCM-Q to pursue an exciting and rewarding career in medicine.” 

The schools which took part were Qatar Academy for Science and Technology, Qatar Academy Al Wakhra, Qatar Academy Al Khor, Debakey High School for Health Professions-Qatar, Swiss International School Qatar, the Academic Bridge Program of Qatar Foundation, Albayan Secondary Independent School for Girls, Al Jazeera Academy, Al Arqam Academy, Tariq Bin Ziyad Independent School for Boys, M.E.S. Indian School, Hassan Bin Thabit Independent Secondary School for Boys, Doha College, and Zubaida Independent Secondary School for Girls. 

Noor Alkhori, a student at Al Arqam Academy, said: “I absolutely loved the Qatar Medical Explorer Program and being able to experience what it is really like to study at Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q). Having the chance to interact with faculty and students and learn about the different career paths that exist was truly valuable. It really helped me confirm my decision to pursue medicine as a career. I’m very excited about the future.” 

Dr. Rachid Bendriss, Associate Dean, Foundation, Student Outreach, & Educational Development, said: “It has been extremely pleasing to see the very high personal standards set by all of the students who participated in our Qatar Medical Explorer Program this year. I am very happy that the online format once again proved extremely effective at providing the participants with a faithful and accurate impression of what it is like to study at an elite medical college such as WCM-Q and to pursue medicine as a career. We hope to receive many applications from this special group in the very near future.”