Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q) has received a bronze award in the Student Success category at the 2026 MENASA Merit Awards, recognizing its efforts to enhance student mentorship and professional development. The MENASA Area of NASPA, encompassing the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia, established these awards to promote best practices and collaboration among student affairs professionals across the region. The awards span five key areas: Student Success, Collaborative Partnerships, Innovative Practices, Research, and Dedicated Professionalism.

WCM-Q’s awarded initiative, titled “From Aspiration to Identity: Building Tomorrow’s Physicians Through Mentorships,” highlights its Alumni Student Mentorship Programme, launched in 2024. This programme targets foundation and pre-medical students, aiming to nurture their professional identity as they embark on careers in medicine. The programme was founded by Dr. Rachid Bendriss, associate dean for foundation, student outreach and educational development programmes, and is managed by student programmes specialist Dina Bamieh.

The mentorship programme pairs incoming students with alumni mentors who offer insights drawn from diverse specialties and international experience. Its objectives include providing early exposure to various medical career paths, fostering professionalism, and supporting students in their academic and personal growth within medical education.

Participants have praised the programme for its impact. Noof AlMalik, a pre-med 1 student, described the mentorship as pivotal to her experience at WCM-Q since beginning her foundation year. Despite initial reservations, she emphasized that the programme quickly became one of the most influential elements of her education. Similarly, alumna Dr. Ghadeer Abdelwahab, currently an emergency medicine resident at Hamad General Hospital, expressed appreciation for the opportunity to guide students. She noted the mentees’ professionalism, initiative, and eagerness to learn as inspiring qualities that reaffirmed her dedication to medicine.

Dr. Bendriss remarked that the award reflects WCM-Q’s ongoing commitment to student development from the outset of their academic journey. He acknowledged the vital role of alumni mentors, whose involvement has been essential to the programme’s success and the positive experiences of its participants.

The MENASA Merit Awards serve as a platform to acknowledge innovative and effective student services and highlight the importance of mentorship and professional identity in the evolving landscape of medical education across the MENASA region.