Carnegie Mellon Qatar celebrates Class of 2020
Virtual event draws more than 450 unique views as friends, families gather to recognize graduating seniors
Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q), a Qatar Foundation partner university, celebrated the 86 graduates in the Class of 2020 at a virtual event on May 6. The virtual event drew more than 450 unique views from around the world as friends, families and members of the CMU-Q community logged in to support and recognize the class.
The CMU-Q community came together to celebrate the Class of 2020 at a virtual senior celebration
Michael Trick, dean of CMU-Q, noted that in the small campus community, the faculty, staff, students and alumni get to know each graduating class very well. “We have watched them grow over the last four years, and they in turn have been excellent role models for the students that come after them. I am very proud of these exceptional young men and women.”
It is the tradition at CMU-Q to hold a formal graduation ceremony where the students receive their diplomas. Due to the pandemic restrictions, CMU-Q has found creative ways to mark the occasion. Graduates will have the formal conferral of their degrees at a virtual ceremony from the main Carnegie Mellon campus in Pittsburgh. When restrictions ease and it is safe to do so, CMU-Q will hold a formal event to celebrate the class.
At the virtual gathering, Trick outlined how the CMU-Q community embraces tough obstacles: “At Carnegie Mellon, we look at a problem as a challenge. We are creative, collaborative, practical, and optimistic. This virtual celebration is our way of recognizing how important the Class of 2020 is to our entire community.”
After the event, more than 100 people from the Class of 2020 and the CMU-Q community joined a virtual gathering to chat, share memories and connect.
The Class of 2020 represents each of the five programs of study at CMU-Q: biological sciences, business administration, computational biology, computer science and information systems. There are 19 nations represented in the Class of 2020, and 47% are Qatari citizens.
The Class of 2020 is particularly distinguished, with 16 students from all five academic programs completing a senior honors thesis. More than half of the students have been involved in community outreach during their time at CMU-Q, and nearly two-thirds have studied abroad.
This is the 13th graduating class from CMU-Q. Including the Class of 2020, the total number of CMU-Q alumni is more than 900.
Videos presented at Senior Celebration, Class of 2020