Provost Office
Message from the Provost
Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) was founded as a research-intensive university with extraordinary opportunities for students to engage in inquiry and discovery. We encourage our students to broaden their intellectual depth by seeking out problems and working through solutions that lie at the crossroads of traditional disciplines.
With the support of a reputable faculty body, who are all leading thinkers in their field, an array of academic and research resources, and international partners, we strive to empower our students to become future leaders, ones who embrace an entrepreneurial mindset, think critically even beyond the classroom, and are always in pursuit of new solutions to national and global challenges.
About the Provost Office
The Provost Office is responsible for:
Planning and implementation of academic priorities across the university including curricular, student enrollment, admissions, and faculty.
Working closely with the academic colleges and the faculty to provide the highest possible quality educational programs, both within and outside the classroom.
Fostering the success of faculty across the university to ensure retention of our outstanding and diverse faculty body and support excellence in their missions of teaching, scholarship and service.
Facilities
Facts and Figures
Core Team Members
Excellence Awards
HBKU takes immense pride in recognizing and honoring the outstanding contributions of our faculty and researchers who embody the spirit of excellence, innovation, and dedication in their academic pursuits.
At HBKU we believe that our faculty members are the driving force behind our success as a leading institution of higher education. They demonstrate unwavering commitment to their fields of study, foster an environment of intellectual curiosity, and inspire students to reach their full potential.
The Faculty Excellence Awards celebrate the exceptional achievements of our faculty across a wide range of disciplines. These awards acknowledge the remarkable efforts made by our professors and researchers in advancing knowledge, conducting groundbreaking research, delivering exceptional teaching experiences and contributing in countless ways to the university and our community.
Join us in celebrating the brilliance, passion, and dedication of our faculty and researchers as we continue to strive for excellence at HBKU.
Excellence Awards Winners
2022-2023 Research Excellence AwardProf. Omar Albagha
Professor, College of Health and Life Sciences
Prof. Omar Albagha led the first and largest study to investigate the genetic architecture of over 40 clinically relevant traits in the Middle East. His study, published in Nature Communications, was the first to utilize the whole genome sequence data of 14,000 Qatari participants of the Qatar BioBank. He also contributed to many genomic studies performed on the Qatari populations in collaboration with colleagues at Sidra Medicine, QCRI, HBKU, QBB, QGP, Weill-Cornell Medicine-Qatar, and HMC.
He is currently leading two major research projects focusing on Diabetes and Hypercholesterolemia (raised blood Cholesterol). The diabetes project is aimed at identifying the genetic risk factors in the Qatari population. The second major project is aimed at developing personalized care for Qatari patients with a genetic predisposition to hypercholesterolemia to achieve better prediction, diagnosis, and management. Furthermore, he is leading a research project, in collaboration with HMC and QBRI, to identify novel biomarkers of stroke.
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2022-2023 Research Excellence AwardDr. Issa M Khalil
Principal Scientist, Qatar Computing Research Institute
Dr. Issa Khalil has developed large-scale systems for generating and sharing cyber threat intelligence, which is utilized by end-users and security operators. The malicious domain scanner that Dr. Khalil contributed to is now part of VirusTotal, a Google-owned antivirus platform, and is used by millions of users every day. Remarkably, four of his patents were licensed to a startup that raised over 4 million euros, indicating the commercial success of the technology.
His works garnered significant attention and coverage from numerous news outlets, including BBC and Qatar TV and is published in top-tier security venues such as IEEE S&P, USNEX security, CCS, TOPS, and TDSC.
In his capacity as a principal scientist at the Qatar Computing Research Institute, he is responsible for spearheading cybersecurity initiatives with critical local stakeholders, including the National Cyber Security Research Agency (NCSA), Qatar Ministry of Interior, and Qatar Central Bank. By virtue of his extensive knowledge and unwavering commitment, he has been able to establish robust research partnerships with renowned researchers from leading universities, including Purdue, Carnegie Mellon, Ohio State, NYU–Poly, and NJIT along with notable corporate entities such as Crane and Simulex, working on projects such as SmartShip and the Indiana 21st-century sewer overflow detection project.
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2022-2023 Teaching Excellence AwardDr. Yusuf Bicer
Associate Professor, College of Science and Engineering
Dr. Yousef Bicer has a track record of impacting student lives. This is proven by many prestigious awards received by his students, including Education Excellence Awards in Qatar (2022), Oman’s National Research Award (2020), and Graduate Student Research Awards (QNRF).
Dr. Bicer utilizes active learning techniques, student-centered discussions, and experiential learning activities to help students internalize concepts and apply them to real-world problems, especially in energy production and conversion.
He typically provides animations and videos to the students before the classes to get ready for the fundamentals of the course content. He also provides software tutorials and engages in problem-solving exercises in the classroom with the students.
Moreover, he ensures a supportive and inclusive learning environment where students are encouraged to take risks, learn from their mistakes, and work collaboratively to unlock their potential.
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2022-2023 Service Excellence AwardDr. Amine Bermak
Professor, College of Science and Engineering
Prof. Amine Bermak is the founding head of the Information and Computing Technology (ICT) division of the College of Science and Engineering (CSE). Prof. Bermak was instrumental in building the B.Sc. in Computer Engineering, the M.Sc. in Cybersecurity, the M.Sc. in Data Science and Engineering, and the Ph.D. in Computer Science and Engineering programs. The development of these programs involved major groundwork related to the drafting of the initial proposals, market analysis as well as ministerial approval for the programs.
During his tenure as acting associate provost, he worked on multiple founding initiatives for the university, such as establishing formal policies, processes, and committees for curriculum development, drafting the faculty handbook, and drafting of major policies and procedures such as the HBKU promotion policy. Professor Bermak was the chair and founder of multiple university committees, such as the founder and chair of the University Academic Programs and Studies Committee (UAPSC). This committee constitutes the backbone for handling curriculum development within the whole University at a very early stage of development of HBKU. Prof. Bermak was also the chair of the University Senate task force.
For his outstanding service to the profession, Prof. Bermak has been recognized through multiple awards. Prof. Bermak is a Fellow of IEEE (only 3% of all 400,000 IEEE members are recognized with this honor), a Fellow of the Asia-Pacific Artificial Intelligence Association AAIA, IEEE Distinguished Lecturer, and a Chair of the IEEE Circuits and Systems Society Committee on Sensory Systems. He was recently nominated by Her Excellency Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, QF Vice Chairperson and CEO, to Join the National Committee for Artificial Intelligence representing Qatar Foundation.
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Selection Criteria
Research Excellence Award:
The award winner shall be chosen based on outstanding research or work (e.g., artistic, literary, philosophical, historical, technical, or scientific) that received recognition from the academic community beyond HBKU. The award is not to be given for a particular piece of research or work, but rather for outstanding achievement, primarily during the candidate’s tenure at HBKU.
Teaching Excellence Award:
Outstanding teaching is not easily assessed. Whether instruction takes place in lecture courses, seminars, or laboratories at introductory or advanced levels, exceptional pedagogy is marked by the active, critical role of the instructor who mentors students, fosters critical thinking, and inspires them to engage in the quest for knowledge. The award is given based on demonstrated outstanding teaching and student mentoring activities at HBKU.
Service Excellence Award:
This award recognizes exceptional service at a level significantly above and beyond the baseline expectation and has an impact that would not exist otherwise. The award is given based on exceptional service in one or more of the following categories:
- Innovative academic programs or related to another facet of university life, such as programs that serve students or faculty in an important and unique way
- Service that contributes to the growth and stature of the University
- Service that expands the impact or reputation of the University in larger communities
Eligibility
All current full-time academic or research faculty members from HBKU colleges (Assistant Professor or above) and research institutes (Scientists or above) are eligible
- Nominees must have at least three academic years of service at HBKU
- No individual may apply for different awards in the same year
- No individual may receive the same award more than once
A call for submissions will be made every fall semester.
Application Requirements
- A nominee’s written reflections on his or her achievements (1000 to 2500 words). Suggested topics include a description of their achievement, the particular problems or issues that they have addressed, the success they have had, the impact of their success, the future direction of their work, and any major external recognitions.
- Current Curriculum Vitae (CV).
- Support letter from the nominee’s dean or executive director.
- Letters of recommendation as stipulated for each award.
- Sample of representative works, syllabi, or other materials relevant to the specific award.
- Other supporting material that the nominee wishes to submit.
- All application materials must be submitted electronically to provost@hbku.edu.qa. Please attach PDF file(s) of all application materials and place the name of the Excellence Award that you are applying for in the subject line of the email. Application materials not submitted electronically will not be considered.
Timeline
- Announcement: Late September
- Appointment of Excellence Awards Committee: Late October
- Electronic Submissions Deadline: Sunday, February 19, 2023
- Awards Announced: Late June
- Resources
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