RIYADH: Three gifted Saudis have been awarded prestigious Rhodes Scholarships. Osama Aljohani, Omar Alomran and Osama Dabbousi will head to the University of Oxford in October next year to join more than a hundred fellow recipients from around the world and begin their fully funded postgraduate studies.
The Rhodes Scholarship is generally recognized the world’s oldest and preeminent graduate fellowship. It was established at Oxford in 1902 and the first scholars began their studies there the following year.
The inaugural award for Saudi Arabia was established in 2018 thanks to a gift from Mohammed Alagil, and additional scholarships were subsequently added through gifts from Abdulrahman Alagil Sons. The donors are co-founders of Jarir Bookstores and their donations were made in collaboration with the Saudi Ministry of Education.
Eighteen students from Saudi Arabia have been awarded Rhodes Scholarships to date. They have gone on to pursue a variety of careers in fields including genetics, medicine and the creative arts. This year’s winners continue a fantastic legacy of excellence, organizers said.
Aljohani is a senior chemical engineering student at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, specializing in hydrogen mobility. Born and raised in Yanbu Industrial City, he grew up overlooking local refineries and chemical plants, which sparked an interest in energy, chemicals and water.
