Delivering Talent to National and International Organizations

KAUST alumni have entered into positions of leadership, scholarship and innovation at leading Saudi and global institutions

KAUST alumni have leveraged their academic accomplishments and backgrounds to secure leading roles in giga-projects that support Vision 2030, and at elite international institutions in Saudi Arabia, the UK and the US.

Dr. Noha Ahmed Al-Harthi Technology Lead for NEOM

Saudi national and computer scientist AlHarthi had always dreamed of a career at the elite scientific research institutes in the US but realized that she could fulfill her dreams at home at KAUST. She was awarded her PhD in 2019, and as a student had closely followed the development of NEOM, a $500 billion mega-city of the future, since it was introduced in 2017. Now its director of new technology initiatives, she is helping to develop what promises to be the most advanced facility for robotics research and development, and collaborating with other world-class research institutions.

Dr. Royale Hardenstine Protected Species Science Manager at The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC)

Hardenstine, who earned a PhD from KAUST in 2020, monitors reefs and islands in the Red Sea, and is an expert on some of the marine world’s least studied creatures. At KAUST she studied the movement patterns of whale sharks, successfully connecting Red Sea populations to those in the Indian and Pacific oceans. Her role for TRSDC includes monitoring other large sea creatures and their surrounding environments. This supports the company’s efforts to develop Red Sea tourism offerings, while at the same time protecting the area’s marine resources and leveraging its natural beauty.

LEA SUBLETT Manager of Alumni Affairs

FOR SUCH A YOUNG UNIVERSITY, WE HAVE AN INCREDIBLE GLOBAL COMMUNITY OF ALUMNI MAKING AN IMPACT IN SAUDI ARABIA AND AROUND THE WORLD THROUGH THEIR SCIENTIFIC, RESEARCH AND ENTREPRENEURIAL ENDEAVORS.

Dr. Shahad AlSairi Postdoctoral Research Fellow, MIT Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research

After earning her PhD at KAUST in bioscience, AlSaiari has continued her research into drug-delivery systems and genetically engineered proteins at the elite Boston-based Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she was recognized in the Innovators Under 35 list in 2020. AlSaiari has developed a method to introduce antibacterial properties via a membrane that has the ability to detect the presence of the common E. coli bacteria.

Dr. Grant Hill-Cawthorne Director of Research at the UK House of Commons

Hill-Cawthorne earned his PhD from KAUST in pathogen genomics in 2013, and has gone on to become the director of research for the UK Parliament’s elected representatives. In that role he serves as an advisor to legislators in matters of science and public health-related policies; the latter is particularly important in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hill-Cawthorne came to KAUST after completing a bachelor’s degree in medical science and neuroscience at the University of Cambridge.

UK HOUSE OF COMMONS

“Studying at KAUST allowed me to undertake cutting-edge research with excellent funding support. Studies I led at KAUST paved the way for me to establish a genomics lab in Sydney and have informed the kind of work I do today in public policy.”