• Current Scholars
• Alumni
• Dream Big
• Scholar Travels
• Scholar Art & Music
• Scholar Stories
• The Scholar Experience

Omar S. Haque

Biography

Omar Haque is combining his interests in the brain and cognitive sciences, medicine and the study of religion.  He intends to enroll in Harvard Medical School.

Omar, a child of poor immigrants, grew up as a nomad. During his first 18 years, he lived in Florida, Guatemala, Saudi Arabia, Tennessee, and New Jersey, as his parents struggled just to put food on the table. "Forced responsibility at a young age convinced me I skipped adolescence altogether," he writes, recalling jobs at fast-food outlets and telemarketing services during his teen-age years.

Mr. Haque's work ethic paid off when he entered Brown University and earned degrees in both neuroscience and religious studies.  He achieved a 3.97 GPA, graduated magna cum laude, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and wrote the first history of Islam in Rhode Island, while compiling an impressive record of school and community service along the way. He founded a chapter of Big Brothers to serve and mentor fatherless boys in Rhode Island, winning a state award for his efforts. Omar was showered with awards at graduation for his scientific research, his teaching of neuroscience, and his excellence in religious studies.

Granted a full-tuition scholarship to Harvard Divinity School, Omar majored in world religions and added a master's degree to his portfolio. He worked as a library clerk, a dining room employee, and fitness instructor to help pay his living costs. Although he had to have reconstructive knee surgery following a sports injury, Omar twice ran in the Boston Marathon. He also went to Mali on a fellowship granted by the National Institutes of Health to research and assist with the first widespread use of an anti-malaria drug in sub-Saharan Africa.

Other Scholars Like Omar