“I am proud to say that I am a graduate of the International School of Choueifat – Sharjah. This is a sentiment that did not come during my time at the school because during that time the challenge was keeping up with the exceptional work load, exam pressure, homework, long school hours, and having very little time for anything else. In fact, during that time, it was rare to hear anyone of us saying we are proud ISC students, as I imagine is the case of any student at any other school. We were teenagers, with very little experience in life and a lot of rebellious energy just waiting to come out.
I graduated from ISC-Sharjah and got accepted into several universities, but I chose to attend the University of Western Ontario, located in London, Ontario, Canada. During my first year at university was the first time I began to have a real appreciation of my challenges as an ISC student. To my surprise, and I still vividly recall this, my first-year Physics textbook was the exact same copy of the Physics textbook we used in Grade 12! So, while all my classmates were struggling with concepts, I breezed through the course and didn’t once stop at a tough question or exam.
As the university years progressed, I developed a new appreciation of the challenges I faced at ISC-Sharjah. The experience as a university student was completely different from that of a school student. At university, we were expected to be more self-reliant and manage our own time and course work. Nobody really cared about whether or not we did our "homework"; in fact, the concept of homework did not exist. We had deadlines. Nobody followed up. It was our sole responsibility to manage our own time and our own load. That is a skill I acquired, without realizing it, from my years at ISC. It taught me valuable studying skills and precious time management skills that very few of my classmates had. These skills placed me one step ahead of everyone – as they all struggled to adjust to the pace of university academic life, it was clear to me what I needed to do and only had to focus on completing the required coursework to advance to the next year.
After I graduated, I decided to continue to post-graduate studies and attended the University of Toronto. Soon after, my career in the field of Human Resources began. I now have a 5-year-old son and an almost-3-year-old daughter. Around this time last year, I had to decide in which school to enroll my son. To be honest, I hesitated a little bit because I heard stories about the increased workload on students from a young age, and I remembered the pressure I faced as a little girl and I imagined what it would be like for my son. But the hesitation was short-lived because I saw where I am now in my life and I am constantly reminded – during my interaction with candidates applying for work and with colleagues and employees at all levels of the company – of the invaluable level of discipline I acquired as a former ISC student and it was clear to me that I want my son to have these skills. It also became very clear to me that my schooling options may be wide, but my "quality" schooling options were limited. The decision was simple really, and after all those years, since my graduation in 1994, I still saw ISC as my school of choice.
And today, I am proud to say that not only did I and my mother graduate from ISC, but my son will as well, and next year, my daughter will be another proud ISC student!!”
Sirine Sadiyyah - Graduate & Parent - Testimonials
“My years at the International School of Choueifat – Sharjah have been very instrumental in my life. I still remember when the school first opened in Sharjah in the U.A.E., my parents moved me from another private school, knowing that the International School of Choueifat had a great reputation. I attended until graduation, after which I continued my education at the University of Toronto Canada.
The goal of any education, in addition to learning, is to give the student the ability to reason and think critically. At ISC-Sharjah, the strength of the education was in the challenging academics and the values that were taught by encouraging such attributes as integrity, commitment, and respect. This gave me a solid foundation for many aspects in my life. I am so thankful for the high standard of education I received.
My elementary experience at Choueifat was a very positive one, with dedicated teachers and principal, whose interest was in students and focused on the fundamentals of reading, writing, and mathematics. During the junior and senior high school years, again the principal and teachers were very influential and I have scores of memories of this very rich period of time.
The academics gave me a strong background to compete well with others not only at university, but also in my career. Most importantly, I learnt the meaning of working under pressure. During my first semester at university, I realized and was confident that I was more than adequately prepared, and the transition was easy. When I started my professional career, I also implemented a lot of the skills I acquired at ISC-Sharjah.
My two children have also been enrolled in the same school. My elder daughter is now a second-year honors student and she feels the same way. Her education at ISC-Sharjah has prepared her in a way that has even exceeded our expectations. I am confident that, just like my own experience, my children have not only been challenged academically, but have learned skills they will carry with them for the rest of their lives.”
Nebal Kheir Ghandour – Graduate & Parent - Testimonials
“I would personally like to thank ISC-Sharjah for supporting and encouraging our daughter over the past 6 years in getting solid academic knowledge and in better understanding the principles of math, science, physics, and business. This helped her in choosing a future profession in the field of environmental and ecological engineering.
We are especially pleased with the way ISC-Sharjah combines the academic knowledge with identifying and developing collateral skills like arts (through ballet and drama classes), sports (Our daughter was encouraged to be part of several teams based on her set of skills), and the SABIS® Student Life Organization (SLO) where students are encouraged and empowered to develop the organization, presentation, and leadership skills required for our future leaders.
I see this as a very important step of a modern education process and preparation of a young adult to become a trusted member of tomorrow's society by offering her the broader picture of life in general and identifying the soft spot for a particular activity.”
Razvan Cotofana - Parent - Testimonials
“My son is an ISC-Sharjah graduate and currently attends George Washington University. He is majoring in Biology (pre-med track). The SABIS® Educational System taught at ISC-Sharjah well prepared my son for college. The school provided my son with the best possible preparation for the SAT and helped him with the application process to universities in the U.S., which are challenging and competitive.”
Ann Ainlay Chebbo - Parent - Testimonials
“I would like to thank the school administration and teachers for their high professionalism and cooperation when dealing with my daughter's inquiries. I'm extremely grateful and thankful for their constant support, which in turn helped my daughter score very high grades in the first semester after joining the school and then becoming one of the first students in her class.”
Reem Tawfik - Parent - Testimonials
“I joined ISC-Sharjah in Grade 4. It is the best school anyone could possibly go to, and I did not realize that until I started my university and saw how easy the courses were. During my first year at university, I have done extremely well with an average GPA of 3.88. I strongly believe that my education at SABIS® prepared me well for success after school. I would like to thank everyone back at ISC-Sharjah for their incredible effort and dedication.”
Ahmed El Matarawi - Graduate - Testimonials
