NEWS
Dr. Khaled Machaca (far left), Shaikha AlQahtani (second from right) and Tembela Eweje (far right) with graduates of WCM-Q's Biomedical Research Training Program for Nationals.
WCM-Q training program provides a boost for budding local researchers
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even aspiring biomedical scientists gained key research skills by completing Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar’s (WCM-Q) Biomedical Research Training Program (BRTP) for Nationals. The BRTP is designed to give Qatari nationals and long-term residents who have recently graduated from college a solid foundation in practical lab skills, experience of working on real research projects alongside WCM-Q’s highly qualified scientific faculty, clinical research competencies, and an understanding of key concepts in research administration. In recognition of their successful mastery of the skills and competencies covered on the program, the interns were presented with certificates of graduation at a special ceremony held at WCM-Q. This year’s ceremony also celebrated the tenth anniversary of the BRTP, which has provided training to 44 interns since its launch in 2011, including this year’s cohort. The program was paused in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic but restarted in 2021. In its decade of activity, the BRTP has become an established bridge for college graduates to transition to the workplace and kickstart careers in research, with many who have completed the program going on to gain positions at leading institutions such as Qatar National Research Fund, Anti-Doping
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Lab Qatar, Sidra Medicine, Qatar University (QU), Hamad Medical Corporation, the Ministry of Public Health, Qatar Foundation, the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, the Ministry of Transport and Communications, and WCM-Q itself. In addition to providing individuals with key research skills, the wider aim of the BRTP is to produce a generation of highly skilled scientists from the local talent pool in order to endow Qatar with the capacity to build the knowledge-based economy of the future. Shaikha AlQahtani, BRTP alumna and Research Training Manager at WCM-Q, said: “Although we had to pause the program in 2020 due to the pandemic, we were able to relaunch it and now we are celebrating a decade of running the program. We met amazing researchers during these years, and what pleases me the most is that our own graduates are recommending the program to their friends and relatives. We have a number of our previous BRTP graduates attending our graduation ceremony today celebrating the successful decade with us and I am very happy that we have this strong bond with them.” The interns who completed the BRTP this year were Alanoud Al-Thani, Jawaher Al-Hamaq,
THE BRTP IS DESIGNED TO GIVE QATARI NATIONALS AND LONG-TERM RESIDENTS WHO HAVE RECENTLY GRADUATED FROM COLLEGE A SOLID FOUNDATION IN PRACTICAL LAB SKILLS, EXPERIENCE OF WORKING ON REAL RESEARCH PROJECTS ALONGSIDE WCM-Q’S HIGHLY QUALIFIED SCIENTIFIC FACULTY, CLINICAL RESEARCH COMPETENCIES, AND AN UNDERSTANDING OF KEY CONCEPTS IN RESEARCH ADMINISTRATION.
