State Magazine September 2012 : Page 22
Consular Officer David Rochford meets with Dr. Majid Alharbi, director of the King Abdullah Scholarship Program. Photo by Karen Bauer Promoting Education Advising Office Aids U.S.-bound Saudi Students By David Rochford, consular officer, U.S. Embassy Riyadh Typical of Karen Bauer’s workday was a recent anxious phone call received from a 25-year-old Saudi woman who hopes to earn a mas-ter’s degree from a U.S. university. Bauer encouraged her to attend a pre-departure orientation at the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh and assured her that she will be permitted to bring her 17-year-old brother as a chaperone; she’ll just have to lift her veil and show her face to security guards before entering the embassy. Answering questions about chaperones and female dress codes is just part of Bauer’s daily routine in her six years as an education advi-sor in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where she encourages students to study in the United States and prepares them for the cultural differ-ences. Through the King Abdullah Scholarship Program (KASP), around 55,000 Saudis are studying in the United States, their tuition, travel costs and living expenses paid by the Saudi government. Around 11,000 additional students are studying in the United States through other funding sources. “When I started this job,” Bauer said, “I never would have thought it possible to see the huge numbers of Saudi students studying in the U.S. that we have today. It really is an exciting achievement for the United States and Saudi Arabia.” 22 STATE MAGAZINE // SEPTEMBER 2012 The Education Advising Centers in Saudi Arabia are an integral part of the mission’s public affairs section, fulfilling the Depart-ment’s mandate to engage youth and promote education in the United States. The centers, in Embassy Riyadh and Consulates General Jeddah and Dhahran, are part of the EducationUSA global network of 170 advising centers supported by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. EducationUSA advisors are housed in a variety of host institu-tions, including Fulbright Commissions, offices of the Institute of International Education, AMIDEAST offices, U.S. embassies and consulates, universities and public libraries. They share the common goal of helping students access opportunities for higher education in the United States. A team of 28 EducationUSA advisors spread across 19 coun-tries covers the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region. Bauer, senior education advisor for Saudi Arabia, leads a team of three ad-visors at the embassy and consulates general. Bauer’s boss, MENA Regional Educational Advisor Kristen Cammarata, is based in Rabat, Morocco, and works with the MENA advisors to promote U.S. study.
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