Al Ghadeer Magazine Issue 1, Fall 2018 | Page 4

A Message from The President of Birzeit University, Dr. Abdullatif Abuhijleh B irzeit University achieved excellence on numerous occasions this year, beginning with its breakthrough into the top 3 percent of universities worldwide in the 2018 QS World University Rankings. Such an accomplishment testifies to the university’s continued efforts to offer an environment in which each and every one of its students demonstrates innovation and entrepreneurship. As part of its commitment to its students, Birzeit University has also inaugurated the Leadership and Active Citizenship Program, “Masari.” The program, the first of its kind in the region, builds the capacities and hones the professional skills of all first-year students at the university. The program serves to strengthen students’ roles in their community and helps them find employment or internship opportunities during, or after, their educational journeys at Birzeit. Birzeit University continues its quest to offer students a wide variety of academic programs that balance theory and practice. The university has launched the Contemporary 2 Al Ghadeer - Fall 2018 Visual Art Bachelor’s Program, the Design Bachelor’s Program, the Executive Master’s in Business Administration, and the Government and Local Governance Master’s Program. Additionally, the Faculty of Arts adopted a new Bachelor’s of Media Program that keeps students abreast of scientific and technical developments in media, and has separately added Chinese to the seven other languages it offers, allowing students a global perspective. To keep up with its ever- increasing number of academic programs, excellent professors, and intellectually-curious students, Birzeit University recently inaugurated the Riad Tawfik Al-Sadik Faculty of Law and Public Administration Building, which will serve the needs of 1,600 students in three departments: law, political science, and public administration. The Palestine Techno Park, the university’s start- up incubator and technological forefront, has been admitted into the International Association of Science Parks and Areas of Innovation. Arts and culture constitute a mainstay of the Birzeit University experience, and this year was no different. The Birzeit University Museum hosted numerous of exhibitions, the Palestine National Orchestra performed to a standing ovation in the Naseeb Azeez Shaheen Auditorium, and Kamal Nasir Hall saw many student-led plays and shows. Birzeit University is growing with each passing day, but it will always remain true to its core values, its mission, and vision. It will always remain a bastion of freedom of thought, freedom of expression, innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship. THE ME NOBODY KNOWS Tales of Birzeit University Students Birzeit University 3