: Adrian Hall, , and Florent D’ Souza

DOHA: The inaugural class of Northwestern University, Qatar, which offers courses in journalism and communication, has a high proportion of Arab students, mainly Qataris. The demographics of this group reveal the new trend of girls outnumbering boys in the quest to make a career in the media. A lot of them are here to change the perspective of the Qatari media world and also to bring a new kind of journalism, which is reckoned and respected around the world. One of the many options why these Qatari students have opted for these courses is because they would prefer a Qatari talking about their own issues rather than a foreigner doing the same.

They also feel that the girls have more liberty to do what they want because they don’t necessarily have to follow their fathers’ footsteps which is usually expected from a son in this society. Almost all the students felt that girls are much better in the creative sector than the boys because from childhood they are encouraged to write and learn arts whereas boys have always been pushed towards science, mathematics and engineering.

A few students from the Northwestern University gave their opinion on why more girls are opting for courses in journalism and communications.

Sara Al Thani - Qatari (Journalism) 

“Guys are not very creative. Moreover, they have the responsibility to carry their father’s legacy so they usually end up taking the careers of their fathers. It is not a social issue anymore that girls have to stay back in Qatar and study, not anymore in a lot of families. My aunts had the chance to go abroad and study, but at the same time there are families who won’t allow their girls to go to Qatar University because there are male teachers.

I decided to stay in Qatar because I am really close to my family and attached to my grandmother. I am lucky to be able to live and study with my family and therefore, I don’t want to lose this opportunity. My brother will be ready to go to the States in three years and then even I intend to go and study there.” 

Omer Mohammed-Canadian (Communication)

“The Indian, Pakistani or the Arab culture is quite similar. They don’t want their sons to get into arts because they don’t view it as a major thing to do. The families intend to marry their daughters within a few years time, so they don’t really care what they choose to study.

“I love what I am doing and this is the reason I am here. Even though my parents think it is a girl’s job, I don’t agree and I don’t know how to convince them. It is just that, I am interested and I consider myself to be a rebel. I guess my attitude towards my work makes it easy for me to stay at Northwestern.

“I believe the main reason for so many Arabs to move into journalism, is terrorism. It is really sad and unfortunate but I feel this is the reality. People here want to change the American viewpoint of Arabs and the Muslim world. They want to tell stories from their point of view and change the present mindset of the people.”

Florent D’Souza–Indian (Communication) 

“First of all, in the communication programme, the ratio is almost equal as we have seven boys and 13 girls, which isn’t bad.  I think communication is not regarded sexist by the society but when it comes to journalism, people consider it to be feminine and not professional even though we have a lot of male journalists.

“In the American system, all degrees are considered to be equal but here in this part of the world there is a hierarchy in education. “Qataris realise the value of education being provided to them by reputable American universities here. They want to study here so that they can aid in the productivity of their own country.”

Ola Diab - Sudanese (Journalism)

“Curiosity is a girl’s thing and writing is a female talent. Girls always love to know things. Men in Qatar are more exposed to local issues than women because women often don’t get a chance. Their desire to explore more about an issue concerning them is what draws them to this profession. There are a lot of problems which need to break out and women getting educated is helping this process, as Qatari women are realising this and that is one of the reasons they are stepping into these professions.”

Lolwa Al Jefairi-Qatari (Communication)

“First of all, the country needs people in these fields because most of the journalists here are Egyptians or Lebanese. Moreover, Northwestern University is one of the prestigious universities for studying journalism and communication.

“The opportunities in the coming years are amazing with the Media City coming up. We have an excellent chance to promote Qatari culture and I think it would be best done if we, Qataris do it.

“I think Qatari boys usually don’t opt for these courses because they feel journalism and communication courses can be learned through workshops and extra-circular activities. If we are considering the gender factor, during my admissions I found that girls outnumbered boys even at the Evanston campus (main campus of Northwestern University) in US. So it isn’t a cultural issue, probably it’s all around the world that more girls opt for journalism and communication courses.”

Adrian Hall - Canadian (Journalism)

“A lot more women dominate journalism and communication courses springs from the fact that men had the power role in this part of the world for a longer period of time. All of a sudden this part of the world has opened up and women are rebounding. They are coming from a place where there was not much freedom and now with the advancements taking place in Qatar, they are taking complete advantage of it.