Qatar National Library will host an informative public event focusing on “The Qatari Experience Abroad” on 3 August.
A group of Qatari professionals will share their life-changing experiences living abroad in the UK, Europe, and the US, where they sought educational opportunities, work experience and new adventures.
The speakers will share their personal accounts of the challenges they faced, including homesickness. While language barriers and cultural differences are two common struggles that lead to alienation in a foreign country, homesickness can also be more acute when moving abroad for the first time.
Dr. Mohammed Al-Hajri, Assistant Professor at the Community College of Qatar; Dr. Khalid Al-Shamari, Assistant Professor of Public Law at Qatar University; Dr. Dhabia Al-Mohannadi, Assistant Professor at Texas A&M University in Qatar; and Dana Al Meer, Information Services Librarian at the Library, will share their stories at the event.
They will share their advice on how they were able to overcome the difficulties they faced when they first settled into their new environments and still make the most of their experience to meet their goals.
“We are delighted to highlight to the Library community the personal journeys of successful Qataris who have been through the challenging yet rewarding experience of living abroad. We will hear how these experiences have shaped their professional and personal successes,” said Maryam Al-Khalosi, Information Services Librarian at the Library. “We invite the community to learn from their unique and insightful observations, and we hope to empower our members with the tools to achieve their own goals and plans.”
The event will also highlight how the Library’s resources, which members can access for free, can assist those who are interested in or planning to move abroad. Among these resources is the Career and Technical Education Database, a source of technical and vocational information with more than 500 titles.
Pivot is another useful resource, providing access to a directory of scholarships, research grants, fellowships and other funding opportunities. An additional tool which attendees will hear about is Mango Languages, an online language learning resource that includes over 71 languages.
