رساله د.موضي الخلف للطلبه المبتعثين

When Mr. Alhaidar first asked me to write something for Almoghtareb, I honestly told him I did not know what useful information I could provide at this stage. I have only been recently appointed as Head of the Women's Department in the General Directorate of Scholarship Programs at the Ministry of Higher Education. In fact, my office is still under construction- literally. With the conviction, however, that our young men and women studying abroad need all the moral support they can get, I decided to write the following words.

Despite the fact that I have not started meeting with scholarship applicants in my Riyadh-based office, I did have the valuable opportunity of meeting with some of the scholarship students in the United States last month, when I came to participate in the Saudi-US relations conference, organized by the Saudi students club at University of Northern Iowa.

That short visit affected me in profound ways. First of all, I got the chance to meet the new Saudi Cultural Attaché to the United States, Dr. Mohammed Aleissa. The few days we spent working together immediately showed me what a wonderfully active and pro-positive change man Dr. Aleissa was. Thus, the first message I would like to send to all the scholarships students is a congratulatory one: Congratulations on having Dr. Aleissa as your cultural attaché. Congratulations that you have a cultural mission committed to providing you with the best services possible. Congratulations that you have a whole team dedicated to helping you achieve your goals.

Secondly, the visit gave me a chance to meet with different student groups, including new scholarship students attending the orientation program at the SACM; students at UNI where the conference was held, and medical students at Kaplan. Those brief meetings left me with mixed feelings: Empathy for the new students awed by the new realities of the world they have just entered. Pride in the students already achieving so much, as they juggled their studies and attempted to build bridges between their country of residence and their homeland- like the students at UNI have amazingly demonstrated with the conference they organized. And finally I felt an immense surge of hope, as I watched the bright Saudi medical students at Kaplan working hard to achieve in an internationally competitive field.

Armed with those feelings, today I write a few lines to all the young men and women of my country studying abroad. You have all been given a golden opportunity to get an invaluable education and to learn in environments rich with different experiences. Please use that opportunity wisely and make use of every moment, of every class, of every mentor. You are not there for a degree, you are there for an education.

You have all left behind family, friends and a homeland; but that does not mean that you cannot carry them with you. Just as you are experiencing new things every day, you can help others learn about you and your homeland. Do not be shy to tell others about your family, your customs and your country. You are our ambassadors to the world. You are our bridges. Each and every one of you represents us. Remember that always, in every little thing you say and do.

Finally, remember that we await your return eagerly. When you have accomplished your missions, when you have achieved your degrees, when you have gotten the education you strived for, when you have told the world about you and your country- know that your country is waiting for you. Like a mother who nurtures her son until he is man, your country expects you to return and give back to the nurturer. Your mission does not end with the ending of the scholarship; on the contrary, that is when it starts.








*Dr. Mody Al-Khalaf

Head of Women's Department

General Directorate of Scholarship Programs

Mimistry Of Higher Education