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The story of the University of Qatar in the last three and a half years is one of success, and the lessons learned from it should be an inspiration for other national universities in the region. This success story is the result of the work of a striking woman, Dr. Sheikha Abdulla al-Misnad, President of the university. Dr. al-Misnad is also a close advisor of Moza bint Nasir al-Misnad, wife of the ruler of Qatar, Shaikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, also a trendsetter in the Persian Gulf. Dr. Sheikha and Princess Moza are also related; Dr. Shaikha is Moza’s aunt.

Dr. Shaikha al-Misnad became President of Qatar University (established 1977) in August 2003, an event making headlines in the Persian Gulf media since she was the first woman to head a national university in the Gulf. Few people had any idea she would change so much at the university in such a short period of time. Her changes aim to make the university more functional and to create an instrument that would support the speedy pace of economic, social and educational development in Qatar.

When Dr. al-Misnad was appointed President of the University, the institution was notoriously dysfunctional. All registered students were virtually assured of obtaining a degree after a few years, even if they did not attend classes regularly. Students who failed tests were rare and cheating on exams was common. Qatari faculty were exempt from any evaluation or scrutiny and were appointed for life while foreign professors, comprising some seventy percent of the faculty, were appointed with contracts renewable every one or two years; they were rarely kept on for more than four or five years, leading to considerable turnover and instability. The fear and sense of insecurity among foreign professors as they faced yearly contract reviews and possible termination without any explanation, made for low faculty morale and opened a window for pressure on grades.

After a year in office, the new President shocked everyone in Qatar when she expelled some 700 students (out of a total of 10,500) from the university. She then retired or fired some 800 employees who were underperforming, doing little work or were otherwise unnecessary. In addition, Dr. al-Misnad reduced the retirement age for Qatari professors from 65 to 60, with the effect of putting some tens of older Qatari professors on retirement. Her actions were considered so radical that she was called before the country’s Shura Council- an appointed advisory body that plays the role of a parliament- to explain her actions in a session that lasted several hours. In the end, the Shura Council could do little to change her course, mainly because she was supported in her reform efforts by Princess Moza, and the Amir himself.

Dr. al-Misnad is trying to reshape the University of Qatar fundamentally and to make it a model for universities in the region, especially those in the six countries comprising the Gulf Cooperation Council. “The University of Qatar, as a national university, should be an important engine for developing Qatari society…. Our university should be a source of experience in Qatar when it comes to scientific research and preparing students for the challenges of Qatar society,” she said in an interview with the author in November 2007. Thus the curricula in various departments were changed so that new ones could focus on the development of Qatar and serve the local economy and as well as the social and political changes Qatar is currently undergoing. “We are trying to make students think and analyze instead of making them memorize descriptive information … the students must know English in addition to the Arabic language…. They must know the history of their country and they should know that they are living in a society based on the exploitation and export of oil and gas. They should also know the impact of changes taking place in the Middle East and the Gulf…. We are trying to change the University of Qatar from a traditional university to one based on international standards,” she said in the same interview.

To transform the University of Qatar into a functional institution, Dr. al-Misnad has decentralized the administration by giving the heads of departments and the deans of colleges more authority and freedom of management. The hierarchical structure of the university was a major problem facing the colleges and departments before Dr. al-Misnad’s reforms. To improve faculty standards, salaries for professors were increased significantly and most important, foreign professors were offered renewable three-year contracts instead of annual renewals. This has raised faculty morale and provided a needed sense of security among the overwhelming majority of faculty who are foreign.

In November 2007, I talked to a number of Qatari students about how they thought things were going at the university. They told me they were aware of the new changes, and also told me that they are learning material that is more practical and that attendance at their classes is higher than the generation before them. Since 2006, Qatari students have established a Student Union and the faculty has formed a Faculty Senate; both of these institutions are innovations in the university’s history.

These university reforms should be understood within the framework of the reform of the entire educational system in Qatar. Since 1998, Princess Moza bint Nasir al-Misnad has made the issue of educational reform in Qatar her central objective. She has been the driving force behind the establishment of Education City, officially inaugurated in 2003. This complex hosts branches of a number of foreign universities (mainly American but including other Western institutions) including Cornell Medical School, Carnegie Mellon University, Texas A and M, and the Georgetown School of Foreign Service, among others. There has also been substantial reform below the university level in grades K-12, including changes to the way teachers are trained; teaching methods in the classroom; reform of administration, and a reshaping of the curriculum. There are two kinds of primary and high schools in Qatar today--the older, traditional schools and the “new, reformed” schools called “independent schools”. Princess Moza aims to have the new independent schools replacing all the traditional schools by the year 2014.

Dr. Shaikha al-Misnad was born on September 30, 1955 in the town of al-Khur in northern Qatar. Her father, Abdulla al-Misnad, was a well-known merchant and shaikh (leader) of the Misnad tribe. Despite his tribal origins and the conservative customs and attitudes of Qatari society in those days, especially toward women and women’s education, he treated all the women in his family well. He encouraged the young Sheikha to study and even to travel abroad for graduate studies after she received her BA in Education from the University of Qatar in 1977. Shaikha al-Misnad then went to England and obtained a Ph.D. in Education from the University of Durham in 1984. She was then one of only a handful of Qatari women with a doctorate in any field. Upon her return to Qatar, she became Assistant Professor of Education at the University of Qatar. Since that time, Dr. Shaikha’s professional career has been tied to the University of Qatar where she became Head of the Department of the Fundamentals in Education in the Faculty of Education (1992); then Vice President of the University for Research and Community Service (2000), and finally President of the University in 2003. Dr. al-Misnad has published extensively in the field of education in Qatar and sits on the boards of several institutions of education in Qatar and the GCC. She has also obtained honorary degrees from abroad.

As President of the University of Qatar, Dr. Sheikha is setting an example for young Qatari women, particularly among her student body. Some seventy percent of the students at the University of Qatar are women. Dr. al-Misnad's message for Qatari women is one of support and encouragement for them to follow their dreams. She says to them, “You have to chose what is right for you. Do not bow to pressure to fit a special role that does not fit you. Do not follow others; choose what is right for you.”