DOHA: The Outstanding Schools Oversight Committee (OSOC) of the Supreme Education Council (SEC) held several rounds of discussions with senior officials from three prestigious international schools ahead of finalising agreements to establish branches of these schools in Qatar in the next academic year.

The three schools - Sherborne School (UK); Shady Side Academy (USA), and the Dubai American Academy - run from early childhood through secondary school, and offer programmes that would further contribute to the variety of schooling options available in Qatar. “These schools offer excellent programmes that prepare students for admission to top universities around the world,” said Dr Ibrahim Al Naimi, the OSOC Chairman. “They would be ideal contributions to the schooling alternatives in Qatar.”

The week-long interaction with the officials was aimed at providing insight into the range of issues impacting education in Qatar. It included visits to the current Outstanding, International and Independent schools, and meetings with representatives of Qatar’s Oil and Gas industry, visits to the Education City universities and meetings at the American and British Embassies. The delegates expressed enthusiasm about the opportunity to come to Qatar. Dr Colin Nevin, Governor of Sherborne International College said: “It would be an honour to be a part of a system that places such high value on educational development,” a sentiment shared by representatives of Shady Side Academy and Dubai American Academy.

“We learned a great deal from this visit, and are committed to bringing our school here,” said Dan Summers, the Assistant Principal of the Dubai American Academy. Trigg Thomas, Associate President of Shady Side Academy said: “What we observed here has exceeded all our expectations.” Team have returned to their campuses for final discussions with their boards.