QF Partner Texas A&M at Qatar Names Maryam Al-Bishri Alumnus of the Year
Published Oct 10, 2022.jpg)
Maryam Ahmad Al-Bishri, Head of Subsurface Asset Planning at QatarEnergy, has been named the 2022 Alumnus of the Year by Texas A&M University at Qatar, a Qatar Foundation partner university.
She is the seventh Alumnus of the Year named by Texas A&M at Qatar, joining Bassam Ahmad ’11, Abeer Abuhelaiqa ’11, Mariam Al-Meer ’12, Dr. Nayef Alyafei ’09, Yousef Al-Jaber ’07 and Muna Al-Mohannadi ’10 as recipients of the award.
She said, “I’m honored and humbled to be the recipient of this year’s Texas A&M Alumnus of the Year award. As a proud Aggie, I do my best to remain connected to Texas A&M University, its professors, its staff and its students. Interacting with the new generation of Aggies is exciting; it’s a chance to get a glimpse of their limitless potential. Whether it’s talking to the students’ parents, welcoming new students or judging their graduation project, it’s my privilege to be given a small role to contribute to my university and ultimately to achieving Qatar National Vision 2030.”
Al-Bishri earned a bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering and a minor in Geology from Texas A&M at Qatar in 2011 and joined Qatar Petroleum as a Petroleum Engineer in Onshore Field Development. In 2015, she earned a master’s degree in Reservoir Geoscience and Engineering from IFPSchool in Paris and was awarded by P&CEO for her excellent academic performance. Since then, she has held a variety of technical positions working on Operated and Non-Operated Assets in QatarEnergy. Maryam is also a graduate from the Rising Leadership Program at Qatar Leadership Centre (QLC).
Al-Bishri is described as a role-model engineering leader who demonstrates all of Texas A&M’s core values — respect, excellence, leadership, loyalty, integrity and selfless service.
As a student at Texas A&M at Qatar, she had an excellent track record in her studies, and was a very intelligent, dedicated and hardworking student with great work ethics and high moral standards. During her time in university, she demonstrated her leadership abilities by assuming responsibilities in several student organizations, such as the Student Government and the Student Chapter of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) in which she was vice president. Today, Maryam chairs QSPE’s Women in Energy and Young Professionals chapters.
Al-Bishri also remains engaged with the faculty, staff and students of her alma mater. She is the first person that the Petroleum Engineering Program contacts for anything needing alumni support. She is a member of the department’s Industry Advisory Board for the Petroleum Engineering Program and represents her class on the Petroleum Engineering Alumni Council.
She also takes time to join Petroleum Engineering industry-related events, such as judging student paper contests, capstone project presentations and exit interviews. She can be relied on to provide constructive and insightful advice and suggestions to Aggie engineering students, including mentoring and coaching, and has in the past presented to current students on essential leadership habits in the workplace.
Al-Bishri plays an active role in supporting women and their professional development and works to inspire young females to enter and excel in the Energy sector. She has served on many programs and steering committees at both the local and international levels. For her dedication, Maryam was named Qatar’s Female Engineer of the Year in 2017.
Dr. César Octavio Malavé, dean of Texas A&M at Qatar, said that Al-Bishri’s track record make her a great ambassador for Texas A&M at Qatar and its Petroleum Engineering Program.
“Since leaving the university, Maryam has served as a role model not only for our graduates but for all women in Qatar,” Malavé said. “She is an engineering leader who represents the best her country has to offer, and we are proud to call her an Aggie engineer.”