Remarks from the Interim Director

I am delighted to share with you our 2023 QUEST Annual Report. This academic year brought about exciting changes for the QUEST program as well as an opportunity to reflect on all of our success over the past 30 years. In November, we celebrated our 30th anniversary, bringing together over 160 alumni, current students, faculty, and staff on the rooftop of the Hotel at the University of Maryland. It was wonderful to connect with a range of QUESTees, from Cohort 1 alumni to Cohort 40 new admits. Thank you to everyone who made this evening a success.

Since Cohort 1 in 1992, off-campus orientation has been a staple of the QUEST program. Due to the pandemic, our off-campus travel was suspended for a few semesters, which made our return to off-campus orientation in January that much sweeter. Forty-five students, nine mentors, and two teaching assistants packed into a coach bus and headed to Camp Tockwogh in northern Maryland for an overnight team-building retreat. It was clear from the noise on the bus on day two that students had built strong bonds that will serve them well throughout QUEST.

We were also able to bring back our study abroad elective this year. Over winter break, 28 QUEST students traveled to Vietnam and Singapore for an amazing hands-on learning experience which included both company visits and cultural excursions.

QUEST received 308 applications this year from prospective students, the most ever. After a difficult review process, we selected 90 new students from the Robert H. Smith School of Business, A. James Clark School of Engineering, and College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences to join our community. We cannot wait to see all that they accomplish.

We welcomed two new professors to the QUEST program this year: Dr. Brian Danielak from the A. James Clark School of Engineering for our data science course and Jessica Alves de Sa, Cohort 16 alumna, for our product management elective.

We are grateful to be continuously improving our teaching team with some new minds and diverse perspectives. We also welcomed new staff member Emily Marks who has hit the ground running, embracing our “students first” mindset.

Our program would not be possible without the incredible experiential learning opportunities provided by our corporate partners. Through these hands-on projects, our students gain the hard and soft skills that are crucial for career readiness. We look forward to continuing these partnerships and also bringing in new partners in the coming year.

In this report, you will find many highlights of our community from the past academic year. Thank you to our students, alumni, faculty, staff, parents, and corporate partners for your continued support as we look to the next 30 years and beyond.

Sincerely,

Dr. Hassan Ibrahim