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Student Affairs

Student Affairs

Student Life

Students at NGU enjoy very rich student life with diverse opportunities for co-curricular activities. You can be part of any of its clubs and associations, and its several health and fitness programs. Come and travel to Aswan to attend a medical convoy and serve children in a Nubian Village, join your friends in a singing contest with the music club, help raise awareness on the important issues through the UNAI Hub at NGU, score a goal with our soccer team, become inspired at a talk by Prof. Sir. Magdy Yacoub, attend international conferences and become an NGU ambassador.
Through creating a safe environment for NGU students to explore their leadership and professional skills and empowering them to serve others, the Student Life Office offers its students with diverse opportunities to discover their potentials.

Student Life Guideline 

Student Life and Activities 

The NSO introduces new students to life at NGU and ensures they have a smooth transition into their university experience. Students are introduced to the NGU educational system, semester structure, and campus rules and regulations, along with meeting their professors, colleagues and NGU’s Student Affairs Office’s team, ensuring they are equipped with all the information they need to begin their studies at NGU. Students are able to get acquainted with a variety of activities and services offered to them on campus .

NGU is committed to fostering an environment of leadership and open thought for all of its students, and has put in place the structure for an involved and committed Student Union (SU) The NGU SU is a platform for all students from all schools to engage with each other and with their university.

The NGU SU focuses on enhancing the student life experience on campus through supporting co-curricular activities and reinforcing NGU’s educational mission and vision. The SU also serves as a space for discussions, innovations, and actual projects initiated and implemented by the students to bring out the best of the members of NGU community.

The NGU SU President and Vice President are nominated and elected by the students. The selected President and Vice President then appoint heads for its different committees such as academics, services, and activities. The main role of the President is to be the official representative spokesman of the NGU student body, ensuring that all students’ voices, concerns, ideas, and plans are heard and taken into consideration. This creates a dynamic and democratic learning environment that stays true to NGU’s mission of truly unbounded thinking.

Throughout the past six years, NGU students elected several SU Presidents and Vice Presidents to represent their voice during their academic year.

  • 2022: Hussein Hendy, President | Layla Abogabal, Vice President

NGU creates a safe learning environment for its students to explore and experiment with different leadership and professional skills such as leadership, communication, teamwork, project planning, and decision making. Through experiential learning activities and sessions, students get to have hands-on experiences on how it is to be a leader, how to speak in public, or plan a community service project. They also get to meet with community leaders and entrepreneurs who have had an impact on society. These programs are a great way to prepare students for their future professions.

NGU offers its students various internship opportunities on campus during the winter and the summer breaks. Students get to experience work at NGU at different departments across campus where they gain professional experience and build both their skills and knowledge base which builds on their competitive edge when entering the workforce.

The NGU Ambassador Program is designed to provide students who are passionate about their university and enjoy helping others, an opportunity to play a leadership role in presenting NGU. Our NGU Ambassadors provide insight to new students and their families as they are considered the face of NGU.

The NGU Ambassador Program offers you an exciting opportunity to build your leadership and networking skills by offering insight on NGU student life. You will support NGU in several events and activities and will get the opportunity to represent members of the student body to NGU visitors.

Supported by NGU, students actively engage in student organizations, clubs, and associations to offer a dynamic experience for everyone. Participating in student-led organizations helps foster students’ leadership skills, acquire skills like teamwork, communication and negotiation, and helps build a sense of a community. Students have worked hard to initiate Student Clubs and Associations to provide an organized environment for the pursuit of various extra and co-curricular activities.

Student Clubs

Newgiza University (NGU) believes in the role of international exposure in creating future leaders who are able to work and make the best of their skills both nationally and internationally. Therefore; NGU through its partners from different educational institutions and universities worldwide offers Exchange and Study Abroad opportunities for its students. The NGU International Office connects NGU students with different opportunities to attend conferences, study tours, and academic studies in different universities.

The objective of the programs offered through NGU International Office is to create unique learning opportunities for students at NGU to explore their field of study in an international context and enable them to add professional experience to their learning. The programs aim at helping its students to expand their learning perspectives by exposing them to different learning methods than that at their own countries which will build their analytical and critical thinking skills. In addition, the programs provide its students with opportunities to act as ambassadors to their university and their country by being exposed to diverse cultures and nationalities during either their Exchange or Study Abroad Programs. Finally, returning NGU students assume leadership roles and provide support to consecutive colleagues who would undertake similar programs.

The NGU International Office provides its students with all the support needed for their travel through pre-departure support before their travels and ongoing support while they are away. The International Office at NGU works on helping its returning students to settle in back smoothly and guides them through the learning and reflective processes upon their return. Returning students play a vital leadership role in providing support to their colleagues throughout the process.

Exchange and Study Abroad Opportunities offered at NGU:

NGU and KCL Exchange Program and Study Abroad Program

Dress Code:

NGU requires all members of the community to present themselves in an acceptable manner, with regard to attire, personal hygiene, and general appearance.  Therefore, students should be dressed in an appropriate and socially acceptable manner that conforms with the Egyptian culture. Appropriate attire is one that is not too revealing nor daring, and that is not figure-hugging, appropriate length, always face visible, and identification visible all the time.

Student ID Card

The student ID card must have full-face photographs. Security and examination requirements mean that students may have to be authenticated against their ID cards.

Health and Sciences Students

In order to comply with health and safety regulations, specific items of protective clothing may also need to be worn during hospital visits and laboratories. During hospital and community placements, students will be expected to comply with the hospital dress code and infection controls.  Certain types of clothing can introduce unnecessary health and safety hazards when working in laboratories.

Not allowed on Campus

Students should not be wearing any of the following on-campus:

  • Short skirts/dresses (only knee length)
  • Sheer, tight, or figure-hugging tops/blouses unless camisoles or other additional layers are worn underneath.
  • Ripped jeans (for both males and females)
  • All kinds of shorts (for both males and females)
  • Cropped tops/blouses.
  • See-through attires
  • Flip-flops

Smoke-Free Policy:

With the objective of lowering smoking among its community; NGU Student Affairs Office (SAO) proposed a participatory approach in the formulation and design of a smoke-free policy for NGU. Risks of smoking whether first hand or second hand has been out there and proved through research on the topic. Implementing smoke-free policies on university campuses has been challenging. However, studies show that using participatory approaches has helped universities successfully implement their non-smoking policies. To read more click here.

Newgiza University (NGU) has been selected by the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) to become the hub for Sustainable Development Goal number three: Health and Well-being for all. NGU is now one of the 17 universities around the world that have been selected to become a hub for the 2030 UN Sustainable Development Goals. SDG 3 will ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.

NGU has been selected for its ongoing efforts to build responsible and conscious medical professionals who are willing to go the extra mile to serve others and their communities. NGU supports and believes in empowering youth through several student activities, projects, and initiatives led by its students.

NGU will continue to create more opportunities and provide all support needed to members of its community that are willing to become part of the NGU UNAI Hub. Whether you are a student, faculty, or staff; you are invited to come up with innovative ideas that promote SDG 3 and ensures to serve the community.

 

Student Affairs

Students at NGU enjoy very rich student life with diverse opportunities for co-curricular activities. You can be part of any of its clubs and associations, and its several health and fitness programs. Come and travel to Aswan to attend a medical convoy and serve children in a Nubian Village, join your friends in a singing contest with the music club, help raise awareness on the important issues through the UNAI Hub at NGU, score a goal with our soccer team, become inspired at a talk by Prof. Sir. Magdy Yacoub, attend international conferences and become an NGU ambassador.
Through creating a safe environment for NGU students to explore their leadership and professional skills and empowering them to serve others, the Student Life Office offers its students with diverse opportunities to discover their potentials.

Office of Student Support

In its continued efforts to serve its community, and in line with the NGU values, the Office of the Student Affairs created the Office of Student Support (OSS). The main objective of the OSS is to provide catered services to help students get an easy transition from school to university, assist them in dealing with common problems that arise during this developmental stage, provide services catered to help students on the emotional, psychological, social, and behavioral domains. The OSS offers free short-term one-on-one sessions to all registered NGU students regardless of major. It also extends support to school faculty and staff who have concerns related to students to ensure the implementation of a holistic cross-disciplinary learning pedagogy.

Well-Being Support to students include:

  1. Coping mechanisms for stress management.
  2. Dealing with personal emotional struggles.
  3. Help with school-college transition.
  4. Mentoring tips to improve soft academic skills.
  5. Support emotional needs of students who are away from their families.
  6. Help to deal with feelings of anxiety stemming from personal problems, exams, and/or overexposure to social media.
  7. Support grief and bereavement situations while taking into consideration outsourcing or referral to a therapist if needed.
  8. Tips to establish balanced and healthy habits (e.g. deal with emotional eating, sleep patterns, etc.).

Session Information

We strongly feel it is our duty to continue to provide support for the community in those current unprecedented circumstances. In an attempt to help students maintain a balanced and well-rounded mindset our sessions now take place ONLINE to best serve current needs.  To book an appointment, please refer to the below information.

– Short-term, confidential, one-on-one sessions (45 minutes each for the first time and 30 minutes for follow-up sessions) on Microsoft Teams or on campus.

– Appointments are to be booked in advance via this link (please choose whether you are booking an online or on-site session and whether this is your first session or a returning student.

– Appointments are available on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays from 10 A.M. to 3 P.M., unless otherwise agreed.

– Referrals from school deans, faculty, and staff are highly appreciated.  However, information is strictly confidential and is only disclosed on a need to do basis with designated parties including parents upon senior administration approval.

For more information, please contact: studentsupport@ngu.edu.eg or visit our office located at C-G.8, Building C.

1- Short-Term Support Sessions: Offered in one-on-one sessions the OSS provides guidance for students to develop healthy coping mechanisms to overcome emotional turmoil, mentor them in areas where cognitive/executive functions skills are needed to improve academic performance, and construct a more long-term plan to deal with similar problems in the future. Sessions focus on immediate struggles and problems a student is facing while taking into consideration the student’s background, physical and medical condition, and current academic status.

2- Screening/Emergency Support: In the case of an on-campus emergency, we provide screening on-site to assess the situation. In cases of health concerns and/or psychiatric needs, parents would be contacted, and referrals to external service providers will be made. Coordination with different schools and NGU administration and designated offices is handled in these cases.

3- Support to Faculty and Staff: We extend our support for all NGU faculty and staff through individual meetings to discuss specific student behavior and problems, and extend advice and support in planning to deal with such problems. Faculty and staff members can refer students to our office when needed; however, students cannot be forced to continue sessions beyond the first one unless they voluntarily want to seek help and/or if those sessions are compulsory to fulfill certain requirements approved by the University Administration.

4- Learning Difficulties/Physical Disabilities: Students with documented learning/physical disabilities are encouraged to contact our office to receive the support needed. Faculty members are welcome to discuss concerns related to certain accommodations needed for students with learning or physical disabilities.

5- Awareness Initiatives: In an aim to spread awareness among the NGU community, OSS collaborates with different schools, offices, and student leaders to help students with the transition and developmental stage; therefore, help increase retention rates and decrease the risk of psychological problems that could manifest at this age. Collaborations include the New Student Orientation for incoming students, White Coat Ceremony for new Health & Life Sciences students, and the graduation ceremony among others.

Faces of NGU

NGU is all about students who lived stories that are worth telling. Our students come from all walks of life, what unites them is that at NGU they discovered what they are capable of.
Read their journeys and get the look and feel of being a student at NGU.

Habiba Marzouk, a first year student in NGU School of Medicine , is a rhythmic gymnast in the National Team of Egypt representing our beloved country in the Tokyo Olympics, and we couldn’t be more proud! Habiba started rhythmic gymnastics when she was three years old, and since then, according to her,  it gradually became the most important thing in her life.  Habiba describes gymnastics as a drive that gave her purpose in life. Habiba reflects on her journey as a professional athlete, and how it impacted her social life by making friendships, travelling around the world, and competing against the best in sports. “I got to be a role model for so many rising champions, and (…) I got to achieve my lifelong dream and qualify for the upcoming Olympics (Tokyo 2021)” says Habiba.  Reaching this level in her sport was a labor of a lot of effort and a childhood dream for Habiba “I remember a long time ago when I went up to Egypt’s best gymnasts at that time and asked them for a photo with so much joy in my eyes and disbelief that I’m standing next to them. Now after so many years of hard work, this generation gets to look at me the same joyful look telling me they wish to be like me one day” she elaborated.

As for choosing to pursue the medical field, Habiba gives credit to gymnastics as the main reason she got into SOM. She believes that long hours of training and the huge amount of effort athletes exert everyday results in them suffering from sports injuries that jeopardize their athletic performance. Habiba describes physical pain as “the biggest challenge” any professional athlete could face; therefore, she took the decision to apply for NGU’s School of Medicine “to be a part of this challenge and help each and every athlete reach his dream, with the least amount of pain. I really owe this sport my life!!!”

I am Haidy Mahrous, year-3 student in the School of Business and Finance. I am 20 years old and I am a professional athletic swimmer with over 50 Giza and national medals and a swimming coach at the Shooting Club. In addition to this, I’ve always been a fitness and health freak, and I’m currently studying a group fitness online course.

In Ramadan 2020, I decided to cut off refined sugar because of how it affects immunity and health in general. I used to add peanut butter to my oatmeal for sohour, when I read the nutrition facts and its ingredients and I found out that it contains sugar. So, the next day I decided to try doing my butter at home, we only had almonds and I decided to try it out. Surprisingly, It turned out amazing from the first attempt. I started trying more kinds of butter such as peanut butter, hazelnut butter, walnut butter and tried to play with the flavors. My greatest creation was the Nocciolata, a healthy version of Nutella, it’s very tempting.

My brother then encouraged me to start running my own business “Nuttiest Butters”. My nut butters are 100% healthy and natural. I always make them by order so that it arrives fresh to the customers. Moreover, I am working on placing my healthy nut butters at different stores to be available for as many people as possible.

I felt a bit anxious at the beginning, as I didn’t know whether people will like my products or not and if they’ll re-order them. What happened is that I sold over 300 jars in around 3 months and I was so overwhelmed and proud. I learned to accept people’s opinions as people have different tastes, accept criticism, do long-term plans, and work for them. I also learned to be patient and to trust the process.

During my journey, my family supported me big time. I also benefited from the “Student-led Businesses Support” initiative offered at NGU. In the beginning, when my startup was still in the introductory phase, I got the opportunity to showcase Nuttiest Butters products at NGU. This helped me a lot regarding exposure, marketing, and sales. Many students, professors, and TA’s got the chance to get their hands on the healthy nut butters and tell me their feedback on the spot

I am Mariam Ahmed a year 3 student in the School of Medicine. I achieved several medals in fencing; starting from the age of 5 I practiced fencing in Egypt. 2015 marked the year of my first international participation, and in 2016 I got a bronze medal in the individual event and a silver medal in teams event in the Mediterranean Sea Competition. In 2017, I got a bronze medal in the individual event and a gold medal in the teams event in the African Championship for Seniors when I was still a cadet. In 2019, I got a gold medal for both the individual and teams event in the African Championship for Juniors; in addition to many gold, silver, and bronze medals in different events of the national championships for the last 5 years. Fencing took a huge part of my teen and childhood life and I always felt strong on the piste and capable of doing anything, and the fact that I achieved a lot was an indicator for me and my coaches that I had a real talent and I simply enjoy a good fight. It was always euphoric like the most satisfying experience, though it lasts for a small-time, but knowing that I did something for myself and that I brought a certain title for Egypt always made me proud of the journey I took and made the exerted efforts a lot worth it.

Through my journey, I learned that talent alone won’t do the job, and that consistency and persistence, and commitment are the key factors to success. I also learned that sacrifices are inevitable and most importantly I learned about myself that I’m not a quitter and that no matter what I will get back stronger even if I had a setback.

I would like to thank my family and my close friends, they are always my number one fan, but I wouldn’t have done anything without my coaches who truly believed in me.

Art is very important to me, especially that I have the talent since I was young; it was challenging yet vital to me to find a new way to practice the art that serves my interests. Therefore, I started to learn more about face and body art (glitter and painting).
About a year ago, I created my face and body art account “Faces by Layla”. I have participated in several events, photoshoots and have been invited to several open days. My biggest achievement was a school event where I was completely on my own without any of my team members. I was capable of creating art for around 80 customers. Moreover, I was featured in a variety of platforms like Youthiety magazine, and Rahet Bally magazine “Rahet Bally Teens: 5 Young Ladies Start Online Businesses”.

Through this short journey, I discovered that I can achieve my goals with all my heart and in the most professional way. Also, I discovered that I have a good creative edge and good leadership skills. Thanks to my family and friends who supported me during my journey.

I am Islam Gabr, a year-3 dental student and a guitarist. Four years ago, I thought I didn’t possess a hobby or a talent. I was considering myself talentless until I bought my first guitar. Four years down, I am a self-taught guitarist; my talent is centered on creating the complex beat and rhythmic melodies from just a single instrument.
I started a YouTube channel months ago and I named it “itsGabr“, and this is where I put all my covers. My motivation shall continue until I have an exciting story to tell my grandkids about and how my life is constantly changing with a single string.
Every time I hear a “WOW” or “OMG”, especially from someone who never heard me play before, I consider myself blessed. When I started playing, I was nervous, as I thought it would take a long time to get to where I am now. But I was wrong, back in my senior year at school, I spent most of my time by myself and my goal was to surprise everyone with my talent by the time I start university. I didn’t know how far I am going to go nor had a plan, I just kept going.
My biggest achievements were creating complex beats with rhythmic melodies from just a single instrument, which is something not everyone is capable of. In addition, starting a YouTube channel for my covers was not a piece of cake. It takes many trials to get the best quality with the best shot. Now, I believe that you can do anything and prove it to everyone by having the right mindset and the will to jump the leap of faith.
My main motive to keep going is my family, friends, and everyone I know around me. As time passes, I wish I told my younger self to keep going and never stop on anything. Therefore, I always tell myself that I will have to go through the hardest to reach the best.

I am Ahmed Ayman, a year-4 student in the School of Medicine. When I was 9 years old, I started practicing table tennis in Al-Ahly Faqous sporting club. I competed and participated in friendly matches until I became good enough to target a medal in the pro tournaments. I won my first medal when I was 11 years old.
I always wanted to be different and achieve something besides my studies. I won Al-Sharkia governorate teams’ championship 3 times; I also won the school tournaments two times. I am proud to be ranked the 10th in Egypt singles, the 4th in Egypt teams, and the 5th in the National Universities Tournament under NGU’s name; this in addition to many medals at local events.
I believe that there is no success without hard work, a person must do all his best and put 100% of his mind, body, and will to achieve what he aims for. I also believe that there is nothing impossible, anything is reachable by being smart, dedicated, and a hard worker. I am happy I made all my family and friends proud of me.

I am Nour Aboushadi, year-5 dental student. Research has always caught my attention, as I believe that the medical/dental field always requires us to be up to date and this is what makes a good doctor as the world is constantly evolving.
When I found out that there was a chance to become a member of the dental research team at NGU, I felt that this is my chance to learn and gain experience especially that it was only my third year. After hard work and perseverance, we got the greatest news that our paper was accepted “The periodontal stem/progenitor cell inflammatory-regenerative cross-talk: A new perspective”. It was my first review article as an undergraduate student. The feeling was indescribable as something that I saw as a dream or so far ahead came true!
But this was just the start of much bigger and better news, our research team managed to be at one of the biggest dental conferences and exhibitions in the MENA region the AEEDC (UAE International Dental Conference & Arab Dental Exhibition) in Dubai, to present our paper as a poster presentation. We got the chance to attend lectures from dentists around the world and meet new people. The person behind all of this was Dr. Karim Fawzy, from initiating the group to supporting us and being a true role model. He was generous with all the information he had about research and open to every question. He has opened the road to many opportunities for us in the future and we hope to always make him proud.
I also got the chance to be part of another research team where I learned new techniques and different aspects of research. We managed to publish 2 review articles with titles of “Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF): The link between obesity and COVID-19” and” Salivary markers and coronavirus disease 2019”. This team was led by Dr. Antoine Fakhry who has not only considered us students but also family which reflected on our work and how the papers came together as if written by one person. He is continually pushing us to do our best along with having faith in our capabilities. Currently, we’re working on a new review article that we hope to publish soon!
I’ll always be grateful for being a part of the NGU alumni and for how dynamic our journey here was which will shape our futures and make us unique. What I achieved was an indicator for me and my mentors that I have a real talent. It was always euphoric like the most satisfying experience, of course, it lasts for a small period but knowing that you did something for yourself or that you brought a certain title in your country’s name always made me proud of my journey.
I learned that talent alone won’t do the job, that consistency and persistence are the real keys to success in addition to committing, and that sacrifices are inevitable but most importantly learned, that I’m not a quitter and that no matter what, I will get back stronger even if I had a setback. My family and close friends were my supporters and I wouldn’t have done anything without my mentors who truly believe in me.

I am Marwan Ehab a year 4 student in the School of Medicine. I am also a certified soft-skills trainer, who believes that if you want the whole world to believe in you, you need to believe in yourself first.
When I joined NGU, I decided to spend the whole 6 and a half years of medicine locking myself in my comfort zone and taking the backseat; in order not to repeat any mistakes. Until I attended a conference at the university named INSPIRE’17, which was tremendously inspiring and made me withdraw that unfair decision. In the two-day conference, I learned how to think, and what to say at the right time and place, which boosted my motivation levels and inspired me that I found my REAL path.
I realized that training and personal development are what I am passionate about and that coaching is the right path for me, and I promised myself that I will not waste any SINGLE second of my life anymore.
I participated in the 8th Winter Camp of the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations-Egypt (2018), where I conducted a session for loads of people, I was extremely nervous and anxious about talking in front of a big number of attendees with different cultures. However, I did it, and I won the best trainer twice by IFMSA-Egypt. Besides, I became the youngest Local Officer of the Standing Committee of Reproductive Rights and HIV/AIDS (LORA) in IFMSA-Egypt 2018-19; a position I won in such a short time.
I became the trainer who gives personal development sessions and inspires others and gives them the motivation they need in the new chapters of their lives. Thanks to NGU Student Affairs team (Mrs. Injie, Mrs. Salma & Mrs. Nessrin), who helped me maintain my sustainability in my path when I started doubting “Am I on the right path or not?”
They taught me that the circle of life is full of obstacles and that there is no complete smooth-lined circle, which motivated me to continue my training path and give more sessions. They also believed in me and my peers by allowing us to participate in tremendous NGU activities as leaders, not followers.
I am proud of the Marwan I am now today, though, I am certain that I didn’t reach my full potential, I still have more to do more training sessions to give and more people to inspire and motivate.

I am Nadine Aboulazm a year-4 student in the School of Medicine. Horse riding has been a huge part of my life since I was young. I was introduced to this magical world ever since I was a baby and fell in love with those animals almost instantly. Growing up, I was always referred to as “Nadine the horse girl” and now, 22 years later it’s still a huge part of me and of who I am. I tried all kinds of sports growing up (tennis, volley, swimming, etc…), but what I loved is horseback riding. The unique bond you have with your horse is irrepressible. At the age of 11, I started riding competitively and since then, I have been participating in and won national and international competitions. The feeling of being on top of a horse is just a magical feeling. It feels like home to me and it is the only place where I can find my balance (I’m normally a very clumsy person). Jumping fences is a whole other story, the second when I am high in the air is the closest thing to flying. It makes me feel free and exhilarated, and the adrenaline and endorphin rush that come with it makes it all worth it.
Juggling between medicine and riding is very difficult, but I can’t imagine my life without it. Horse riding is part of me it has taught me so much and it helped me become the person I am today. To win in our game you have to put 100% trust in an 800 kg animal who can’t speak and has a mind on its own. You also have to ride through the fear and pain. This sport is based on mental strength and I’ve learned throughout my journey, to be calm no matter the pressure and to take important decisions in split seconds, all while maintaining a calm and controlling attitude with the horse underneath you. It also taught me to get back up and try again whenever I get knocked down, which is in my opinion a very important lesson to use in every aspect of life.
My biggest supporters were my parents. I learned the love for this sport from my dad, who was a champion rider in his days and who is now my trainer. My mother is also my biggest supporter, although she gets way too scared and tensed whenever I am on top of a horse, but she never stopped pushing me and encouraging me.

I am Esraa Amr, a year-1 student in the School of Dentistry. I have always dreamt of becoming a doctor, and I was supposed to study hard to reach my dream. However, I was diagnosed with cancer in 2019, and I had to go under chemotherapy.

Due to the stress and fatigue I experienced from the chemo, I couldn’t study at all and I had to repeat the year. Nevertheless, I believed that I will make it next year.
One day, I was passing by Cairo University going to the hospital, I saw the students going to the university, laughing with their friends; I kept this picture in mind, wishing to pass high school and start a new chapter of my life. I continued to combat cancer till April 2020, this was when they told me that I was cured of cancer and became a cancer survivor.

Examinations were on the doors, and by the time I was giving up on my dream, the minister canceled nearly half of the curriculum due to Covid-19. My teachers kept motivating me to take the exams, they kept reminding me of my dream “Come on Esraa, you can do it and become a doctor that’s what you’ve been dreaming of”.
I thought that I will not be able to do it, I am not in good health and I can’t move, but my mother’s insistence is the number one reason I decided to take the exams. I have faith in God, and I relied on him, every day I used to wonder will I be able to reach my dream, it won’t be easy, but I have to work for it. I had to study very hard, I used to wake up at dawn and study, talked to my teachers, attended zoom meetings, studied what I have missed, and worked hard until the date of the first exam. It was the Arabic exam, I was so worried, no matter how ready I was. I said to my mom “I won’t go to the exam”. She replied while smiling at me “God with you, don’t you ever hide”.
The exam questions were good for me. When I left I was really happy, which gave me a great push to achieve my goal; but unfortunately, I got tired and I couldn’t complete all the first round due to chemotherapy and its side effects, I felt the terrible side effects all over my body. And, here comes round two of the exams, with the most difficult subjects chemistry and physics, it went well. It’s time to know the results, I was so frightened, but, I was sure that God won’t let me down. I saw it coming, every day the dream approaches more and more. I was surprised that I got very high marks and I could not believe it, I had a mix of feelings I cried, laughed, screamed, and even panicked. I didn’t only get high marks in the exams, but also I was accepted at the School of Dentistry at NGU. I always thought that happy endings are only in movies, however, hard work, believing in yourself, and having faith in God always pay off.

I am a business student in my 2nd year at NGU. I believe that everyone has a spark in him/her, but they must find the right thing to trigger it. I found my spark in helping others. I was in such a closed community with limited resources to do any other activities than studying for school. However, I invested in my capacity by taking communication skills courses, which gave me enough courage to get out of my comfort zone.

My communications skills helped me to join many activities that helped me later to become the youngest president of the student union in my school while in grade nine! I approached plenty of student clubs to join and, I moved up from a club member to clubhead until I reached up to the president.
This was so important for me as it helped me boost my self-esteem, and upgrade my communication skills. One of my life goals is to help a lot of people through my role, at least by teaching them new lessons and skills that are not offered by schools.
Helping others make me feel grateful, and this feeling is living with me till now. It is something that I’m proud of!
What I have learned is that human can give a lot more than what they think they we can do. Everyone is unique in his/her way and they must gain so many experiences to help us do our real jobs perfectly.
Writing these lines can’t end without thanking my family, friends, and every single person who helped me during my journey till today.

Hello, this is Youssif Hussieny my story began when I completed the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award (Silver Level). I had to work on a service, skill, and physical recreation for a minimum of 1 hour weekly for 6 months. To achieve my service record, I assisted teachers in the infant’s department in my school teaching them mathematics and English. Achieving my skills record completing levels A1 and A2 in German in a very intensive course. My physical activity record was achieved by running 10km, and that was when my stamina peaked up.

After completing the 6 months, we needed to complete a very challenging hike in Cyprus. In a group of 8, we got maps of Cyprus and had to correct our routes to hike each day and dedicating some time for rest. In Cyprus, we had to spend 3 days in the wilderness, hiking mountains for a minimum of 7 hours every day and sleeping at a campsite where we cooked our food ourselves. My most important achievement in this experience was not the award alone, but the fact that I got to learn more about myself was even more valuable. I managed to find passion in something I would have never considered before, which was hiking.

My feeling after completing the expedition was splendid, I walked away from Cyprus knowing one thing, and that is my new pro-found love for hiking. After returning from Cyprus, I organized trips to Turkey, Georgia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, and a few more countries where I went hiking and surrounded myself with nature. Hiking taught me what peace of mind is.

I have learned so many new skills that have helped me in my day-to-day life. Before the expedition, I learned how quickly I can learn a language, I would have never expected to complete the beginner course and become certified by Goethe Institute in a very short period. The expedition taught me how to truly work among a team, it helped me become more decisive, improved my problem-solving skills, and allowed me to stay on my feet while handling difficult situations. As someone that studied Geography at A-Level (higher level in the British curriculum), we learned how to read maps and use the compass to guide us. It was exceptionally satisfying to put what I learned into a real expedition. My parents are constantly pushing me to try out new things to learn more and be the best version of myself.

Adel won 11 Karate championships at the governorate level and achieved 2nd Dan Black Belt a fact that enabled him to work his way to be a certified trainer. Describing the life of an athlete, Mohamed believes that practicing Karate has relatively improved several aspects of his life both as a student and a person in general.

Benefits mentioned by him include better physical and mental health, higher self-esteem, and a stronger sense of self-confidence. On the academic level, Mohamed described the effects of practicing spots regularly to be strongly correlated to enhanced academic performance by raising his energy level, helping his focus and attention while studying since mastering self-defense techniques require a lot of self-discipline and focus. Not only did Karate develop academic skills throughout Mohamed’s learning journey, but also his social skills. Excelling in sports and being part of a team while making new friendships can be a good motivation to meet new challenges.

For any young person in this developmental stage, the sense of accomplishment is always a drive to be intrinsically motivated. Mohamed described it so well by elaborating on how “unbelievably cool” receiving awards, and that it is worth the effort and risk in the end, especially when great effort is exerted while being injured, but still having to go on, and continue the training plan under supervision.
We had to ask Mohamed about his tips and lesson learned that he can share with young people his age.

In his words, Mohamed reflected on his experience saying that “what I have learned is that you must believe in your dream and not give it up until it becomes a reality, no matter what difficulties and challenges you will face and when this dream comes true, find a new challenge and dream and do not let go of your passion. Almost any goal can be achieved with a good plan, strong discipline, and proper actions.”

While those were Mohamed’s words of advice, he also did not fail to mention constructive feedback as an essential tool to develop. Learning to benefit from support from those who offer is also a skill. To Mohamed, his greatest supporters are his father and his mother, as they are the ones who encourage him to play this game, and of course his coach.

As we are confident that he has yet a larger support team, we would like to add that as an NGU community, we are also cheering you, Mohamed. You make us proud that you are part of SOP in NGU, adding and developing your skills by making the best out of your learning experience on campus.

NGU’s year 2 Medicine student literally found her voice in singing. Jala Khaled found it difficult to express how she felt using words until she started her singing journey. It started as a fun activity with her friends, jamming to music in the car, and then joining the school choir during her free time. When Jala’s music teachers, friends, and family started to encourage her to take vocal lessons, the real exciting part of the journey began. It was in her first year in NGU that Jala finally pushed her confidence out of her comfort zone with the support of her friends.  Jala joined the Music Club, one of many student organizations in NGU’s student life and activities where she was able to experiment with her talent with her music range. At the beginning of the second year, she decided to take her singing more seriously, and create an Instagram account where she posted short covers. Jala defines her main intrinsic motivation with the constructive feedback and support she gets from her friends and family. She further describes having the opportunity to experience professional singing to give her a boost of self-esteem to feel successful and brave. “So far, I have learned that I am someone who doesn’t give up easily, and always puts goals for myself, and succeeds to reach what I want” explained Jala. “I finally thought it was time to try and lead the Music Club with the help of my colleagues to offer opportunities for other people to just put themselves out there,” says Jala, “it was my definition of freedom.”

My name is Ahmed Talal, year-4 School of Business & Finance. Paulo Coelho once wrote that when you want something, the entire universe conspires in helping you to achieve it. I did not have that quote in mind when I first stumbled upon a newly rising building just across my compound back in September 2020. However, it is by that inevitable pull of destiny—and cool-looking posters on the side of the building—that I came to be a content writer for Egypt’s leading community magazine, Cairo West.

The nature of my work covers various lifestyle topics that I love and involves staying on the edge of what’s new all over Cairo; from yummy food reviews to swooping in on the latest and greatest must-see venues and activities. What I thought could be a gym, and hence worth exploring, turned out to be an office building for a magazine called Cairo West, or so I was told by the group that I bumped into when I first stepped in. As luck would have it, I struck up a conversation with a particular member of that group, who coincidentally shared mutual friends with me, and told me he was interning in the magazine.

During that time, COVID-19 had forced many things to change, but not the extrovert in me it seems, because the next morning I went back to the building, having slept on the idea and realized that I might have just stepped into the definition of a win-win situation, because I had the chance to be among friends, do something that I am passionate about all while strengthening my CV and skills. I was then interviewed by the Editorial Director and accepted the next day. I interned for the whole month of September, which afterward my friend and I were supposed to be going back to university. Surprisingly, I found that the magazine’s CEO had arranged a meeting with me during which she expressed how impressed she was with my work and wanted me to continue, but as a part of the team. Needless to say, I accepted the job as I love what I do and the people I work with.

This story is very near and dear to my heart! Every time I think about it, I am reminded of God’s grace and the serendipity of it all. This whole experience came from nothing and just happened because it was meant to be. It has been an entirely passion-driven journey so far, because how else would I have known that I can have the best of two worlds? Clark Kent did. So, I went ahead and did the same! I, now, both write and study for uni. Also, nothing keeps me motivated like my family and their thrill and excitement to see my name in magazines that are distributed all over Cairo. I recall feeling quite embarrassed when I had the meeting with the magazine’s CEO as it was delightfully unexpected.

For me, I learned that creativity and effort are an odd pair, the more you give, the more you discover that you have to give. This showed me that I can handle a heavier workload than I initially thought I could. As for others, I learned that sometimes meeting the right people at the right time in life can change the course of my journey in a more positive direction. Thanks to all of my friends and family who supported me throughout this journey.