US ambassador Dana Shell Smith formally welcomed first-year students to Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q) during the annual convocation ceremony last week. 
Along with Ilker Baybars, dean and CEO of CMU-Q, the university’s leadership and student representatives, the US envoy offered encouragement and words of wisdom to the incoming class. 
“Your time at Carnegie Mellon will be built around exploration and discovery. As you progress in your studies, I encourage you to push harder, seek more knowledge and strive to be the best by innovating,” she said.
The Class of 2020 is the most diverse first-year class in CMU-Q’s history, with freshman students from 23 countries spanning five continents, CMU-Q has said in a press statement.
In his remarks, Baybars said: “We have selected you because you have talent, a strong work ethic, creativity and drive. We chose each of you because we believe you will thrive and succeed at Carnegie Mellon. It is my pleasure to welcome you to Carnegie Mellon University.”
The new students were also welcomed by Farha Khan, CMU-Q student government president, who said: “These four years at CMU are a time to galvanise your personality, polish your skills and discover your true potential. You will be surrounded by highly competent professors and an abundance of opportunities that will be life-changing.”
CMUQ offers undergraduate programmes in biological sciences, business administration, computer science, computational biology and information systems. The Class of 2020 is CMU-Q’s 13th 
incoming class.