Heba is a graduate of Damascus University, with a bachelor’s degree in economics and a major in accounting.

Her professional and academic choices have always been to serve the goals that she is passionate about, which are first and foremost to be an influential member in her community—one who could make a positive lasting change.

As a Palestinian refugee who was born and raised in Syria, she grew up observing the need for basic life needs, especially after the Syrian war in 2011. She started volunteering when she was 17 to help internally displaced persons (IDPs) improve their livelihoods, after securing food, water, and good sanitation for them. After graduating, she worked in finance and accounting, with some national and international humanitarian organizations that utilize funds to implement various projects that could elevate the situation of refugees and IDPs affected by war.

All these experiences have shaped her interest in development domains and how it interacts with public policy and economics, and how all of this could be visualized by other communities. Also, she started to realize the need to have good governance in her country in order to achieve good solidity in her community. Therefore, she preferred to be directly involved in the contribution to the implementation of these projects, which is why she needed a higher education that could enlighten her more on how to manage them.

While at BSIA, Heba seeks to specialize in international economic relations, human security, and migration. She wants to understand more about how public policies and international affairs can affect the political economy of different countries. She is also eager to build a strong network with some leading graduates and policy experts.

After getting her master’s degree, Heba plans to put the skills and knowledge she has obtained into practice and build a career in the project managing field to help make a change for a better future for everyone.