IAIS Summer Speaker Series: ‘What next after your Middle East, Islamic Studies and Arabic Degree’

Over the summer we have been showcasing some of the fascinating careers fields that our alumni have taken following their degrees in Middle East, Islamic Studies and Arabic.

First up students got to hear from alumnus Andrew Phillips (BA Arabic & Islamic Studies 1986). Andrew believes that his ability to speak conversational Arabic got him his first job, which was the start of a successful career in publishing, taking him across the world.

Alumna Cordelia Begbie shared with us how her understanding of the Middle East gained through her BA in Middle Eastern studies with Arabic (2015) has enabled her to create and run the Middle East programme at the think tank Asia House. She now works as a freelance analyst enabling her to continue her studies at Exeter with a PhD in Middle East Politics.

The final speaker in the summer series was Chloe Cornish, Financial Times Middle Eastern correspondent. Chloe joined the online webinar from the Lebanon. Her MA in Politics & International Relations of the Middle East (2015) deepened her understanding of this complex region.

We are now looking forward to hearing from 3 more alumni of the Institute over the autumn term:

• Fadi Abdellatif (PHD Palestine Studies 2019), Senior Program Manager and Advisor, USAID - 22nd October 2020
• Nicola Harris (BA Arabic Studies 1993), Chief of Staff, Global Energy, AXA XL - 11th November 2020
• Terry Pattar (BA Arabic Studies 2001) Director, Janes Intelligence Unit - 10th December 2020

The speaker events are open to alumni as well as our current students.