Alumni advice to students: ‘Enjoy AUC’

Thanks to all AUC alumni who shared their advice on the Facebook group

Galal Zaki ’68: “The future is not the way it used to be. Practice and academia complement each other. Innovate or evaporate.”

Cherif Ramsis ’74: “You never know where your career will take you. Fate has its way. Enjoy the ride, and don’t try to fight fate.”

Djehanne Massabky Mazhar ’75, ’79: “You are lucky to have such an institution, so make the best of it. Education stays with you forever.”

Soha Farouk Kamal ’88: “While you pursue success, don’t forget to live.”

Omar G. Barazi ’92: “Follow your passion and build on it. Learn it. Make it your life. Make it your career. Do what you love, and you won’t have to work a single day.”

Nahla Mesbah ’92, ’10: “Make sure you get involved in extracurricular activities. They enrich your life and help build your character. Don’t fall into the labeling trap. Most ‘tough graders’ I have taken courses with provided the best teaching experiences I’ve had. Remember to enjoy your interactions with fellow students. [AUC] is where many of us made lifelong friends.”

Heba AbouRabia ’93, ’14: “Be proud of your learning experience at AUC. It was and still is the best in Egypt.”

Fadi Habib ’94, DPL ’99: “GPA is important, but it should be number 10 on the list:

1. Go to all trips and parties.

2. Enroll in as many clubs as you can.

3. Be active, not just a silent member of clubs and associations.

4. Make a lot of friends, and enjoy their friendship.

5. Participate in a student exchange program for a summer or semester.

6. Learn to play music.

7. Play a few sports. Choose one sport, and play lots of it.

8. Learn stuff. Don’t just go for grades.

9. Enjoy and relax. It doesn’t matter how stressful you think it is. It is your best time on Earth.

10. GPA.”

Shima Barakat ’95, ’98: “Learn to work with as many different people as you can. Truly discover what it means to be a good person to be around. Your time at AUC is when you discover yourself and sow the seeds to be a global citizen who contributes to the world rather than expect it to deliver. The world/society doesn’t owe you anything. You owe it everything.”

Doaa Bashanfar ’96: “Change is the only stable thing in life. So be agile to absorb it, move, achieve and improve.”

Maha Saleh ’02: “Enjoy the soft Core courses. You will cherish this information later on — adding up to your general knowledge, overall skills and social intelligence.”

Shady Mohamed Zayat ’04: “[Take part in] internship programs. … If you can find a part-time job, go for it — because if you think that only being an AUCian will help you, [then] you are dreaming.”

Karim Salem ’04: “Enjoy what you are doing to the maximum. These days won’t come back. Your bachelor’s degree on its own is not enough to help you realize your dreams. The experience and hard work will. Focus on getting as much practical work experience as you can.”

Mia Malak ’11: “Enjoy your undergraduate years. Enjoy learning freely. Enjoy discovering. Enjoy making new, lasting friendships. Enjoy doing new things. Explore; find yourself; learn about yourself and all that you can do. It’s the phase where you can still be a kid with the mind and body of an adult. Be silly; be serious; be funny; be curious.

Make use of what the University offers you. You can’t imagine the freedom that a liberal arts education gives you. Make use of the library. We’ve got one of the best libraries. Participate in student activities. Learn. Enjoy your classes.”

Mona Al-Abiad ’89, ’10: “Go to all trips and events. Make more and more friends. Takes courses in music, theatre and dancing. Enjoy the experience to the maximum. Go to your professors all the time. Talk to them, and always ask for their help and advice.”

Sherine Samir ’00: “Study what you love and not what others want. Enjoy your life at AUC because the world is different outside of it.”

Sarah Badreldin ’02: “Accept and respect other cultures as you come across them.”