The global economic and geopolitical landscape is constantly evolving. Competing challenges include the ongoing impacts of COVID-19 and finite natural resources that demand we find new ways to be sustainable. 

With leaders searching for the next wave of scientific discoveries, today’s university graduates and professionals need to master their field of study and contribute big ideas and solutions. 

With many asking where they can learn to become innovators, to develop their ability to understand questions before generating answers, and look at the world unconfined by disciplinary boundaries, an important question persists: Does the answer lie in research-based education?

Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), a young research university based in Doha, Qatar, frames the learning experience in an innovative way. Fusing advanced scientific research with multidisciplinary academic programs, its students make the giant leap from acquiring knowledge to engaging and developing novel ideas of their own. 

Engaging in the global knowledge economy

HBKU was established by Qatar Foundation in Education City, the country’s knowledge nerve center. It’s not surprising then that some of the really ‘big ideas’ in science, technology, engineering, law, humanities and social science, public policy, and other fields are being incubated there. HBKU has the advanced infrastructure, technologies, and expertise to steer scientific research in a balanced and sustainable direction. Internationally recognized research strengths serve both Qatar’s knowledge-based economy, but also shape solutions that have a global impact.

HBKU’s current projects are as diverse as the scientists, researchers, and students who conduct them. They are wide-ranging and span precision medicine platforms, technologies that influence behavior, digital health tools, drug repurpose screening, a COVID-19 public policy tracker, ‘green’ transportation solutions for smart cities, COVID-19 misinformation, a regulatory framework for using AI, and Islamic bioethics. 

Cutting-edge pedagogy

The university’s integrated and multidisciplinary academic programs focus on high-demand fields. These programs are taught at one of HBKU’s six colleges and are supported by three national research institutes, each of which retain strong international affiliations. Researchers and scientists at HBKU are driving scientific advancement - and bring their students along as active participants. 

“This is the ideal experience for students, having research-active faculty who teach,” says HBKU Provost, Dr. Michael Benedik. “They educate using the latest, most up-to-date discoveries, which is at the core of HBKU’s cutting-edge pedagogy. Students learn the best ideas; not just on the facts, but on the processes and ‘how do you know things’. 

“What’s unique about HBKU relative to other research universities is our focus on how to solve problems – both locally and globally. By melding research and a graduate education, we are able to be creative and innovative with our programs.”

Overcoming traditional boundaries

Rather than a degree in traditional disciplines, students choose from specialized master’s and PhD programs in sustainability, genomics and precision medicine, social policy and program evaluation, exercise science, digital humanities, Islamic art, architecture and urbanism, audiovisual translation, and other areas. Degrees are interdisciplinary and focused on local and international challenges, while engagement across the colleges and research institutes creates a continual cross-disciplinary influence in teaching and research. 

“We train students to find solutions to challenges impacting their communities, countries, and the sector or industry they work in,” adds Dr. Benedik, who has spent over 30 years in academic research and leadership and holds a PhD in Molecular Genetics from Stanford University. 

Students are mentored in research labs, such as the Persuasive Technology, Digital Addiction, and Intelligent Behavior Analytics Lab. They can engage with thought leaders and impact discussions through the Policy Lab Series and Astrolabe student research journal. Academic programs connect them to industry-based projects and internships, study trips, and cross-campus collaborations or mentoring within Education City. 

Faculty gravitate to HBKU from around the world and are internationally recognized for pursuing high-impact research. The number of scientific publications rises steadily each year, opening doors for more external funding. Its Journal of Islamic Ethics has achieved Scopus indexing.

A growing reputation has attracted reciprocal academic partnerships with the Graduate Institute, Geneva; the University of California, Berkeley; Harvard Stem Cell Institute; Boeing; NASA; the Smithsonian Institution, and others in industry. 

HBKU now leads conversations on genomics in the Arab region, blockchain and Fintech, persuasive technology, solar solutions, digital disinformation, climate adaptation, and other contemporary challenges. Within the last year, faculty have led the largest international study of its kind on COVID-19 family life in 72 countries. Applied innovations that have emerged are smart wearables, AI apps, and a reservoir simulator model for the oil and gas industry. 

Interdisciplinary colleges

From supercomputers in a state-of-the-art data center to sophisticated 3D printing labs, the College of Science and Engineering advances core expertise in ICT, energy and environment, sustainable development, and engineering management and decision sciences. 

At the College of Health and Life Sciences, students engage in scientific inquiry and computational analyses of biological data at the Cell and Molecular Biology Facility, High Throughput Drug Screening Facility, and Bioinformatics Facility. 

An interdisciplinary research agenda makes new contributions to global Islamic scholarship at the College of Islamic Studies. Faculty are renowned ‘Islamic finance influencers’ while the award-winning Maker Majlis platform is building a maker culture among the region’s youth.  

With a scholarly and applied perspective, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences focuses on the fields of Middle Eastern Studies, as well as Translation Studies through its Translation and Interpreting Institute.

Each college creates unique ways to give their students the opportunity to gain an in-depth understanding of their discipline and develop an independent set of values. At the College of Law courses have a strong international and comparative focus and balance theory with practical application. 

The College of Public Policy (CPP) offers a sought-after Master of Public Policy and newly launched Master of Social Policy and Program Evaluation. With faculty active within global knowledge networks, there are endless opportunities to gain perspectives from real-world decision- and policy-makers.

Impactful Research

On another part of the Education City campus, HBKU’s research complex, with a 223,000 m2 footprint, houses three national research institutes with core facilities, labs, and state-of-the-art indoor/outdoor facilities that are national assets and open to all students. 

Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute has a national mandate to address grand challenges related to energy, water, and environment and support the research needs of industry on sustainability and climate change. Tackling large-scale computing challenges, Qatar Computing Research Institute (QCRI) works with stakeholders in industry and the government, and has had an immense influence at the policy level as the architect of the blueprint that became Qatar’s national AI strategy. Impactful translational research at Qatar Biomedical Research Institute is directed at turning cutting-edge scientific discoveries into life-saving therapies and meaningful health outcomes.

An innovation ecosystem

A nascent RDI ecosystem, supported by HBKU’s Innovation Center (https://innovation.hbku.edu.qa/) and Office of the Vice President for Research, rewards original thinking and entrepreneurship. Novel solutions, products, and business models developed by students and faculty are considered for funding to take their industrially-relevant ideas to commercialization.

Dr. Nadir Yildirim, Innovation Director at HBKU, says: “The Innovation Center embodies the university’s research and impact-focus and our commitment to an ecosystem that enables collaboration on idea generation and transforming theoretical ideas into applied solutions for real-world impact.” 

Many of the solutions that emerge within this ecosystem will address challenges faced by industry and government. It’s an example of how, at HBKU, real-world problems and challenges tend to become fuel for innovation. 

HBKU is built on a foundation of innovation and the pursuit of made-in-Qatar solutions for local, regional, and global challenges. HBKU is where Qatar’s big ideas grow into real-world realities.

Students who wish to enroll in an academic program at HBKU should visit admissions.hbku.edu.qa. Applications for Qatari nationals and residents close on March 15. Note that the application deadline for the new Master of Social Policy and Program Evaluation (MSPPE) is March 1 for international applicants and April 15 for Qataris and residents.