Qatari industry leader Khalifa Abdulla al-Sowidi has joined the chemical engineering faculty at Texas A&M University at Qatar (Tamuq), a Qatar Foundation partner university, bringing over 30 years of experience to the classroom to benefit engineering students.

“Al-Sowidi has been appointed a Professor of Practice, who at Texas A&M are professional engineers and industry leaders whose years of real-world experience add tremendous value to the education of Texas A&M’s engineering students,” said Dr César Octavio Malavé, dean Tamuq.

“Al-Sowidi is a true engineering leader in Qatar,” Malavé continued, “and we are honoured that he is joining our faculty. One thing that is hard to convey to students through classroom learning is real-world industry experience and what engineering is like outside the university. Having a leader of al-Sowidi’s calibre as a faculty member will enhance the already outstanding engineering education students receive here at Tamuq to make our graduates even more sought after and effective when they join the workplace.”

Professors of Practice bridge the gap between industry and academia and bring the industry perspective to the classroom directly to students. At Texas A&M’s main campus in College Station, Texas (US), professors of practice teach undergraduate and graduate courses, and help develop new curriculum that reflects cutting-edge industry technology and practices. Professors of practice participate in research as advisers and principal investigators for research grants, and act as industry liaisons to identify research topics and research support. They also serve as student mentors, curriculum advisers and faculty advisers to student professional organisations.

Al-Sowidi will support the teaching of courses in the Chemical Engineering Programme, conduct research and participate in R&D projects with industry involvement. He earned a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering in 1984 from Arizona State University (US) and by 1997 he was the CEO of Qatar Fertiliser Company, a position he held until 2015. In his role as CEO, he managed the construction and commissioning of large-scale ammonia and urea plants with a combined project value of more than $3bn.