MOU Enables Georgetown Students to Hone Policy Skills with Brookings Doha

Thanks to a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed in June, the Brookings Doha Center (BDC) will reserve one or more internships per semester for qualified Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q) students.

The MOU will provide a structure for GU-Q students to apply theories and skills learned in the classroom to policy and research work done at Brookings Doha Center. Students who successfully complete their internship will earn one academic credit toward their Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar degree.

Dr. Salman Shaikh, director of the Brookings Doha Center, said: “The Brookings Doha Center is ever-seeking to expand its local capacity and reach. With this in mind, the BDC is proud to have formalized its long-standing relationship with Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in Qatar. The Center looks forward to providing GU-Q students with first-hand access to the BDC’s mission and programming, as well as to expanding the students’ research abilities and acquainting them with local business practices. In exchange, the BDC looks forward to bolstering its access to and collaboration with the vibrant academic community of GU-Q.”

Dr. Gerd Nonneman, dean of Georgetown University in Qatar, called the agreement an exceptional opportunity to engage interns in substantive research in the context of Brookings Doha Center’s policy analysis, in ways that connect naturally to the university’s International Politics curriculum.

“One of the benefits of the Georgetown campus in Doha is opportunities such as this for our students,” Nonneman said. “I know the kind of high-caliber students Georgetown brings to the arrangement will contribute enthusiastically toward the work of Brookings in Doha. At the same time our student interns will hone their research capabilities and enhance their professional skills.”

BDC will assign a mentor to each Georgetown intern. The mentor will provide on-going guidance for typical duties and assignments relevant to independent research, policy analysis and programming on the Middle East.

Successful internship candidates will have a demonstrated interest in Middle East politics or U.S. foreign policy in the region. Along with excellent writing and research skills, a strong academic background will be required. Knowledge of Arabic will be considered a plus.

The MOU agreement was formally entered into by Brookings Institution and Georgetown University, both based in Washington, DC. The initial period of time for the agreement is two years.