The new class of trainee physicians at Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q) donned the white coats of their future profession for the first time during a symbolic ceremony that also marked the start of the college’s medical curriculum.

Forty-four medical students are included this year’s intake, 22 are Qatari nationals. In total, 41 members of the class were promoted after completing the two-year WCM-Q pre-medical curriculum, while three have joined from other universities.

WCM-Q White Coat ceremony 1
WCM-Q dean Dr Javaid Sheikh welcomes the new students.

White Coat Ceremony

The White Coat Ceremony marked the culmination of a three-day orientation programme, during which the students were fitted for their scrubs, met with faculty and peers, and learned more about the four-year medical curriculum. The event featured a keynote speech by WCM-Q Class of 2011 alumnus Dr Essa Abuhelaiqa, now a nephrology consultant at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC).

WCM-Q also inducted 55 new students to its pre-medical curriculum, of whom 18 are Qatari nationals, while 15 are long-term residents of Qatar. WCM-Q also welcomed 21 high school graduates to its one-year Foundation Program, of whom 19 are Qatari nationals.

The pre-medical and foundation students had a separate orientation programme, which included a tour of WCM-Q’s state-of-the-art campus followed by sessions on time management, academic expectations and integrity, student health and wellness, plus a reading project and opportunities to get to know the faculty and fellow students. There was also a completion ceremony for returning Foundation Program students entering the pre-medical curriculum.

Combined, the two-year pre-medical curriculum and four-year medical curriculum form the WCM-Q integrated Six-Year Medical Program. Its successful completion leads to the Cornell University MD degree.

First-year medical student Fatima Al-Mohammed (second, left) with fellow freshmen.
First-year medical student Fatima Al-Mohammed (second, left) with fellow freshmen.
First-year medical student Mohammed Al-Bishri with his mother, Dr Noora Al Hammadi, deputy medical director and chair of radiation oncology at HMC.
First-year medical student Mohammed Al-Bishri with his mother, Dr Noora Al Hammadi, deputy medical director and chair of radiation oncology at HMC.
First-year medical student Raghad Ibrahim with her mother and sister.
First-year medical student Raghad Ibrahim with her mother and sister.

Foundation Program

The Foundation Program provides intensive instruction in the basic sciences, English and mathematics to prepare students for the rigours of the Six-Year Medical Program.

The orientation programmes, coordinated by the Division of Student Affairs, are designed to help students become familiar with the curriculum, facilities, people and processes of WCM-Q so that they can quickly  learn the materials they need to thrive at the college.

For the students beginning the two-year pre-medical curriculum, the orientation programme concluded with the Ibn Sina pinning ceremony, named after one of the most influential scholars of the Islamic Golden Age.

WCM-Q dean Dr Javaid Sheikh welcomed the new students as they ‘begin learning the skills to provide world-class patient care, make new discoveries in biomedical research, and become the next generation of leaders striving to enhance healthcare for all.’

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