Education is most precious legacy to children: Parents

The parents of Alfaisal University students who received their degrees on Sunday night at the Princess Haya bint Turki Auditorium expressed happiness their children had finally graduated.
“It’s the realization of a fond dream of our daughter Reham. However, I’m almost at a loss for words to express my happiness in learning that she topped her MBA class, graduating with first honors. It’s only now that we’ve learned about this, ” said Abdullah Al-Onaizan, a book author, map expert and businessman.
He added he and his wife Fatima Al-Olayan were extremely happy for their daughter.
Mohammed A. Al-Fraih, Alfaisal University assistant vice president for advancement, administration and finance and IT director, said he would not be surprised if Reham and other members of her class pursue further studies.
He added the sprawling palace in front of the Princess Haya bint Turki Auditorium, the graduation venue, belonged to the late King Faisal.
Reham said in an interview that she was now planning to pursue a doctorate degree, although she was still undecided where.
Dr. Abdullah Al-Snaidi, a psychiatrist at the King Khalid University Hospital, and his wife Monirah, also said they were happy for Zoha, who finished second in her class with first honors.
“We’re happy indeed for Zoha. She’s not only a bright girl but also studied hard,” said Al-Snaidi, a psychiatrist at King Khalid University Hospital.
However, working and studying at the same time had left little time for Zoha to spend with the family, and her mother said: “I wish she slowed down a little.”
The parents of other undergraduate students who received their degrees were also happy. Forty-eight-year-old businessman Khaled Al-Shbaily and wife Haifa were also happy that their son Faisal had graduated with a business degree.
Retired Gen. Mohammed Hussein Al-Asas, 70, was also happy that his son Saad had finally graduated with an engineering degree.
Behind the happiness of parents was their unqualified support for their children as they worked and studied, as in the case of Reham.
She said that while she was single-minded and properly motivated in her career, she had to study hard for her MBA degree while working full time at the same time. She topped her class with first honors. She had earlier graduated at King Saud University with a bachelor’s in information technology.
“I did my best although I seemed to always feel that my best was not enough. But I realize now that it served as a challenge for me to always do my level best in my studies,” she said.
While she was doing well academically, she was worried about her thesis for her MBA degree.
“To many graduate students, this is the most difficult part. Right at the beginning of the course, many of them are already thinking of what subject to write about for a thesis. It’s good if it’s approved. But supposing it’s not, there’s that fear the you’ll have to start all over again,” she said.
But being a good student, with the moral support of her parents, professors and university staff as well as friends, she and her team finished the thesis entitled “Assessing the Effectiveness of Acquired MBA Knowledge for Women in a Cross-Functional Organization.” Her team members were Samaral Salem and Sadeem Al-Quraishi.
“With my MBA, I will have better career opportunities,” she added.
Zoha Al-Snaidi, who graduated second in her MBA class with first honors, said earning her graduate degree for the past two years and six months had been a great challenge.
She was a full-time deputy manager of the Dale Carnegie Training center. “It was hard work, to say the least, but it was challenging to work and study full time at the same time,” she said.
She is also a trainer, which tired her out as she attended classes at night.
Her thesis was entitled “Setup of a One Stop Shop (OSS) to Advance SMEs in Saudi Arabia: From Reality to Target Expectations.” Her team included Fahdah Al-Haian and Zubaida Al-Duaij.
“I’d like to thank my family for their moral support. They’re my inspiration,” she said.
Even for undergraduate students, earning a degree had been a challenge like in the case of Saad Al-Asas, who earned his degree after five years of studying at the university.
“I am happy that I have finally graduated. The five years that I studied at the university for my engineering degree have posed many challenges to me, but I was determined to finish my studies and I learned much,” he said.
He’s planning to look for a job and he believes his degree will serve him in good stead.