26 UAE Students Win Prestigious Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Scholars Program Scholarships

Of the 60 applicants, 26 were selected as SMSP scholars by judges from NYUAD, NYU New York, and leaders from the local community

Press Release

NYU Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) has announced the 2022/2023 class of Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Scholars Program (SMSP), which offers a select cohort of talented university students unique access to specially designed courses, lectures, leadership experiences, networking, and graduate school counseling.

Established by NYUAD, in conjunction with the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC), the SMSP recruits students from the UAE’s federal institutions of higher learning: United Arab Emirates University (UAEU), Zayed University (ZU), and the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT). Of the 60 applicants to the program, 26 were selected as SMSP scholars by a notable panel of judges from NYUAD, NYU New York, and leaders from the local community.

The Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Scholars Program recognizes promising students and provides them with unparalleled educational and leadership development opportunities. The students who won the chance to become Scholars for this year should be very proud of their achievements.

Co-chair of the Scholars Program Steering Committee, Her Highness Sheikha Mariam bint Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan

Furthermore, Her Highness highlighted the UAE’s unwavering support as the primary force behind the selected Scholars’ continued success, emphasizing that “they are the future leaders of tomorrow who will help serve this nation, fulfill its ambitions, and ensure it is always at the international forefront.”

We are pleased to welcome another exceptional class of scholars to the Class of 2022-2023. The Scholars Program recognizes promising students and provides them with unparalleled educational and leadership development opportunities, and the students who won this coveted opportunity should be proud of their achievements in being selected. The academic, leadership, and cross-cultural experiences they will experience in the coming months will not only prepare them for graduate school, but also serve them in their future careers. The faculty and staff look forward to working with them in this exciting step on their journey.

NYUAD Senior Vice Provost for Strategy and Planning Fatma Abdulla

Scholars will split into two groups to explore one of two courses. One is entitled “Challenges of the New Political Economy”, taught by the former US Ambassador to the UAE Michael Corbin. The second offering is “Crises in Context: The Forces That Shape the Great Events of Our Time”, taught by noted author and journalist James Traub. The remaining courses take courses on leadership development, public speaking and public presentations, and critical thinking and persuasive writing. The scholars will also take courses that look at leadership development, public speaking and public presentations, and critical thinking and persuasive writing.

The SMSP has been ongoing since 2008 and has seen 14 batches of students graduate during that time. From 300 alumni, 130 students have subsequently enrolled in or graduated from graduate school, with 13 students enrolling in or graduating from PhD programs, five of whom also hold graduate degrees.

The Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Scholars Program is one of two Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Community Programs operated by NYUAD. The other is the NYUAD Summer Academy for recipients of the Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Scholarships for Outstanding High School Students, which is a competitively selected college preparatory academy for Abu Dhabi-based Emirati high school students entering their tenth year.

The 2022-2023 Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Scholars are:

  1. Adil Mahroof
  2. Ahmed Abo El Wafa
  3. Alia Sultan Obeid Dhalee Alzaabi
  4. Amina Khurshid Akhtar
  5. Belen Berhane Woldegabriel
  6. Farah Amer Hasan Ayyad
  7. Fatima Mohamed Abdulrahim Ahmed Alsheebani
  8. Hamda Ali Salem Ghabish AlKhamisi
  9. Hamzeh S Abu Qamar
  10. Hoor Ali Kamal Mohamed Alhammadi
  11. Jamaluddin Sailab
  12. Jawahr Abdulla Hamdan Abdulla AlShamsi
  13. Mariam Mohamed Abdalla Mohamed Alobeidli
  14. Markos Petros Mumasha
  15. Mohamed Mutab Mohamed Mutab Almehairbi
  16. Mohammed Huwaishel Mohammed Saeed Alnuaimi
  17. Najla Majid Mohamed Alghazal AlSuwaidi
  18. Nasser Jaafer Mohammed Alreyashi
  19. Omar Salahaddin Burhan Alomari
  20. Reem Simon Gebredingil
  21. Salama Abdulla Mohamed Naji Alqahtani
  22. Salama Ahmed Khalfan Bin Hazim Alsheryani
  23. Shaikha Mohammed Salem Omair Alshamsi
  24. Shouq Obaid Ibrahim Mohammed Hussain
  25. Simon Kebede Darota
  26. Winner Admasu Abula

About NYU Abu Dhabi

NYU Abu Dhabi is the first comprehensive liberal arts and research campus in the Middle East to be operated abroad by a major American research university. NYU Abu Dhabi has integrated a highly selective undergraduate curriculum across the disciplines with a world center for advanced research and scholarship. The university enables its students in the sciences, engineering, social sciences, humanities, and arts to succeed in an increasingly interdependent world and advance cooperation and progress on humanity’s shared challenges. NYU Abu Dhabi’s high-achieving students have come from over 115 countries and speak over 115 languages. Together, NYU's campuses in New York, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai form the backbone of a unique global university, giving faculty and students opportunities to experience varied learning environments and immersion in other cultures at one or more of the numerous study-abroad sites NYU maintains on six continents.