Background & Decision to Study Abroad
Studying abroad was something that I always knew I wanted to do. Growing up in Latakia, Syria, the dream of studying at a prestigious university abroad was never a question of if, but when. I don't remember a specific time when I decided this; I always just knew, and because of the instability of Syria, I worked hard on turning that dream into a reality. My turning point came when I learned that a mutual friend of mine had been accepted into Princeton University. It was then that I first heard about the Syrian Youth Empowerment Program (SYE), and from that moment, I began to take the process seriously.
The College Application Process
My application journey was anything but straightforward. I initially planned to apply exclusively to universities in the US, and I submitted an Early Decision application to UPenn. Then the travel ban came.
I got deferred from UPenn, and with the visa situation making studying in the US feel nearly impossible, I shifted my focus. In total, I applied to three universities in the US, including Harvard, and three outside of it, Carnegie Mellon Qatar. I was rejected from Harvard and UPenn, but CMUQ said yes, which, honestly, I was not expecting at all.
Why CMUQ & Writing the "Why This College" Essay
I wasn't originally planning to study in the Middle East; I wanted to study in Europe. Yet, CMUQ stood out to me for a few reasons. Academically, it's an incredible school, and I'd be getting a degree from Carnegie Mellon University itself, with no mention of the location on the degree. The class sizes are small, which means personalized attention from faculty, and the internship and career opportunities in Qatar are vast. And of course, visa-wise, it was the perfect fit given the situation with the US.
When it comes to writing the "Why This College" essay, my approach was to always tie everything back to a personal experience. I never just list what the university offers; they already know what they offer. Instead, I used a specific theme from my own life and connected it to why I was drawn to CMUQ specifically. I always made sure to mention at least four specific things: a class, a professor, an academic club, and a social opportunity. The more specific, the better. I researched more than 30 universities during the SYE process, and I'd set a 20-minute timer and go through each university's website, focusing only on things that were relevant to my major in biological sciences. If I felt like it wasn't a good fit, I simply didn't apply.
For my CMUQ essay specifically, I wrote about how in physics, there's no such thing as an absolute truth, yet in my experience on the physics national team, it felt like there was an unspoken natural law that most members were always men. After challenging that, I wanted younger girls to see that scientific authority doesn't belong to a single gender. That mindset of questioning assumptions and seeking new frameworks is also what draws me to biological sciences. So you see, I didn't just write about the experience itself, but about what I learned from it and how it connects to what I want to study.
Academic Stats
My academic stats were honestly one of the strongest parts of my application. My average across four years of high school was around 98.5%, with my lowest mark being a 97% in 10th grade. For the SAT, I got a 780 out of 800 in math and a 670 out of 800 in English. It's not a perfect English score, but since I was applying for STEM, math carried more weight. For English proficiency, I only took the Duolingo English Test and scored 145 overall, with no sub-score lower than 140.
Extracurricular Activities
My activities weren't the most mind-blowing on paper, but I worked hard to portray them as authentically and compellingly as possible, and I think that made a big difference.
My most significant activity was being part of the Physics National Olympiad team, where I earned a bronze medal and was placed 13th out of 51 finalists, out of around 700 total participants. It required attending science camps, conducting experiments, and a lot of independent study, for around 9 to 10 hours a week for about 11 months.
My second most important activity was research. I was part of Together We Seek's selective research program, and I also wrote an independent research paper. One paper was about the effects of biological warfare throughout history, and the second was about integrating nanoparticles in cancer therapy, which was my way of bridging my physics background with my interest in biology. Neither was published, but research doesn't have to be published to be valuable. I was also a physics tutor and an Olympiad ambassador at the Distinction and Creativity Agency, where I led STEM exam supervision and organized outreach tours to schools in Latakia. I volunteered at the Children's Public Library at the Cultural Center of Latakia, where I helped launch a book swap initiative and organized screen-free events for kids from families facing financial hardships. I played tennis and coached two to three younger girls in singles and doubles. I also hiked internationally, including in Europe, and took the initiative to organize group day trips.
My advice for activities is simple: fill all 10 spots on the Common App, and describe every single activity as authentically and as compellingly as you can. The way you describe an activity matters just as much as the activity itself.
Honors & Awards
My honors weren't the most prestigious, but I think for Syrian applicants specifically, universities understand that we don't have access to the same opportunities as students elsewhere. My honors included my bronze medal in the Physics Olympiad, placing 13th out of 51 finalists. I was also placed 1st in Latakia in the entry exam for my school, the First Superior School, and was in the top 3 to 5% nationally. I was an international silver medalist in the International Astronomy and Astrophysics Competition, and a national silver and bronze medalist in the Bebras Computing Challenge for two consecutive years. Finally, in 11th grade, I was ranked 3rd in my class, placing me in the top 3%.
Essays & the Writing Process
I wrote a lot of versions of my personal statement before landing on the final one. But I kept the theme consistent throughout, because I decided on it early and stuck with it. I wrote a montage essay rather than a narrative one, and it just came to me naturally. I'm not someone who reads a lot or considers themselves a strong writer, but reading other students' essays online helped me more than any tip or guide ever could. I'd look for what they all had in common, what qualities shone through, and what made each one memorable.
My biggest advice for essays is to always show, never tell. I keep a running list on my notes app of personal experiences that reveal something about my character, and whenever I sit down to write an essay, I go through that list and find the experience that best fits what the essay is asking for. Your experiences have to be authentic; even if you think you can get away with exaggerating, you won't be able to write a decent essay about something that isn't genuinely true.
For resources, I heavily used College Essay Guy, read essays on Classifyed, browsed Reddit, and asked friends to share their essays with me. I focused more on reading actual essays than on reading tips about how to write them.
Financial Aid & Scholarships
CMUQ operates differently from most universities when it comes to financial aid. It doesn't use the CSS Profile; instead, it's partnered with Qatar Foundation, which funds need-based grants for students. The grant covers tuition and housing, and from what I've heard, they meet 100% of demonstrated financial need as long as you provide accurate documentation. I was also pre-qualified for a merit scholarship from CMUQ itself before even starting, and there's an additional merit scholarship available after two semesters based on your participation and activities at the university. So there are essentially three potential sources of financial aid, which is something I'd really encourage applicants to look into carefully before applying.
And yes, there is an opportunity to go to Carnegie Mellon's main campus in Pittsburgh for a semester or two as a CMUQ student, which I'm really looking forward to exploring.
Advice to Future Applicants
If I could go back and change one thing, it would be my mindset during the process. I spent so much energy on US applications, knowing deep down that the visa situation might make it impossible. If I had known earlier that the travel ban was coming, I would have redirected that energy toward applications outside the US from the start.
But more than that, don't count yourself out before you even try. I never thought I would get into CMUQ. But I submitted my application, I gave it everything I had, and it worked out. Don't let the prestige of a university convince you that you're not good enough to apply. You might surprise yourself!
