“Beyond Expectations”
Bethlehem University Graduates Interviewed by Palestinian Telecom Start Up

11 December 2007

Bethlehem University graduate Musa Yousif  interviewed by Tariq Soufan from Wataniya Palestine

50 Bethlehem University graduates were interviewed Tuesday by Wataniya Palestine Telecom, the second mobile telecommunications company in Palestine, as part of the company’s recruitment campaign for its Customer Care Department. “We are quite hopeful that we will find most of the needed graduates for our company at Bethlehem University given the fact that it is well known for providing high-quality education, especially in its Business Faculty”, Mr. Maxim Sansour, Senior Public Relations Manager for Wataniya Palestine Telecom (Wataniya), said.

Dr. Fadi Kattan, Dean of the Faculty of Business Administration, and Mr. Rami Sabella, a lecturer in Economics at Bethlehem University, selected the most talented graduates from the Faculty of Business Administration and the English Department. As testament to the importance of this recruitment campaign and the need for jobs, all invited alumni were present for their interviews with Wataniya staff.

“For us as Bethlehem University faculty, it is very important to not only provide our students with high-quality education but also to give them future career perspectives after their graduation”, said Mr. Sabella, one of many former students who works at Bethlehem University.

Mr. Sari Sakakini, Recruitment and Development Manager, was highly impressed by the graduates’ performance. “They went beyond our expectations. It was rewarding to see how professional and confident they were”, Mr. Sakakini commented. He went on to say that they all had valuable professional experience, excellent knowledge about business, a good command of the English language and strong communication skills. 

Mr Sabella concluded, “I am glad that Bethlehem University is providing new companies with the needed professional candidates who can help foster innovation and development in Palestine”. 

Wataniya Staff touring BethlehemUniversity Campus: (from left to right) Rawan Shak’a, Sari Sakakini, Tariq Soufan, Haitham Alfar, Maxim Sansour

Wataniya Palestine Telecom won a Palestinian Authority tender to build and operate a second mobile telecommunications network in Palestine in September 2006. The company is currently planning for its commercial launch in mid 2008. Wataniya Palestine Telecom is 40 percent owned by the Qatari Telecommunications Company (QTEL), 30 percent is owned by the Palestinian Investment Fund (PIF), and the remaining 30 percent will be offered to the public in the form of shares sometime near the company’s commercial launch.