EDUCATION

M.Sc. in Islamic Art, Architecture and Urbanism, Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar, expected graduation May 2021

BFA in Interior Design, Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar, May 2012

BIOGRAPHY 

Neihan Yaqoob started her career working as a Junior Interior Designer at Turner International Middle East, Qatar. In this role, she worked with the project management team to critique architectural and interior design drawings; produced written reports on design development; and served as a liaison between clients and design consultancy firms. In 2014, Yaqoob started working as a Writing Center Instructor at VCUarts Qatar. The switch in careers was not an abandonment of a degree-relevant career, as some people mistakenly think. Her decision to pursue a writing instruction career at an art and design school marks a culmination of her passion for writing, design, and education.

In her current practice, Yaqoob works with students in one-on-one consultations to help them at all stages of writing in any of their writing-related assignments across disciplines. Her tutoring philosophy is grounded on the belief that writing is a powerful tool that empowers students; therefore, she helps students foster skills, such as self-reflection, critical thinking, meta-cognition, and collaborative learning to help them with clear self-expression and production of meaningful work. Apart from one-on-one consultations, Yaqoob creates presentations and conducts in-class workshops for English, Art History, Meta-Studio, and other writing-intensive design courses. Her goal at VCUarts Qatar is to not only guide students in using writing as an effective tool to become better artists, art historians, and designers but also help them appreciate the importance of writing in today’s visual-based culture. Beyond her regular work with students, Yaqoob works with faculty to proofread their conference proposals, theses, and papers. Yaqoob also teaches ESL classes occasionally to help the building support community improve their English reading, speaking, and writing skills. 

Yaqoob’s research focuses on exploring how art, design, and play can be used as an innovative tutoring tool to shape the landscape of contemporary writing center practice. She questions how design principles, design-based thinking, and recursivity in design processes can possibly shape writing development. She is interested in transforming text-heavy writing concepts into fun, interactive 3D models through creative ‘making’ processes. Her research goal is to enhance and diversify traditional tutoring pedagogies by introducing playful methods to The Writing Center’s toolbox of teaching techniques.  

PROPOSALS AND PRESENTATIONS

• “Why Design? Aren’t We Writing Papers?” Workshop conducted at International Writing Center Association (IWCA) 2019, Columbus, OH, USA, Oct 17-19, 2019.
• “Suspension of the Peer Tutor Program: Why Writing Tutors Studying Art & Design Failed to Bring Artistry into Tutoring Sessions.” Poster presented at International Writing Center Association (IWCA) 2019, Columbus, OH, USA, Oct 17-19, 2019.
• “Why Design? Aren’t We Writing Papers?” Proposal accepted for Middle East North-Africa Writing Center Alliance (MENAWCA), Beirut, Lebanon, Apr 24-25, 2019.
• “Intellectual Discrimination: What Needs To Change When We Really Want To Change?” Proposal accepted for International Writing Center Association (IWCA) 2018, Atlanta, GA, USA, Oct 10-13, 2018. 
• “Why Writing Centers? First National Dialogue on Writing Centers in Pakistan,” Panel speaker at Ardeshir Cowasjee Centre for Writing, IBA (main campus), University of Karachi, Pakistan, Apr 13, 2017
• Jean Hodges and Neihan Yaqoob. “Connecting the Dots: How Multilingual Design Students Reflectively Think and Write to Innovate.” Poster session co-presented at IWCA 2015, Pittsburgh, PA, USA, Oct 8-10, 2015.