Strengthening the Cohort Connection

The American Psychiatric Association found in early 2024 that nearly one in three Americans aged 18–34 report feeling lonely every day or several times a week. 

Rawan Abualjass (MBP ‘27) is focused on helping students in Northwestern Engineering's Master of Biotechnology Program (MBP) not be part of that statistic. 

Rawan is the new president of the program's Association of Biotechnology Students (ABS) that serves as a go-between with students and the MBP faculty and administration. One of the main goals of her presidency is to enhance connections among MBP students.  

“There's always been a lot of emphasis on building industry-level connections, but I think there's a strong opportunity to also build connections within the cohort itself,” she said. “We all come from different backgrounds and have different levels of education, and I feel like we can build each other up.”  

Rawan and the rest of the ABS board already took their first steps to build that understanding. The group held a holiday-themed event in December designed to foster connections among the cohort.  

The benefits of those connections extend beyond the students' emotional well being and to their academic and professional performance. Research in the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education shows that graduate students in structured peer‑mentoring or cohort‑based programs have significantly higher retention and completion rates than those without such support.  

Peer mentorship is also associated with better grades and smoother progress through program milestones, such as research presentations and coursework transitions. 

Rawan is an example of someone who can share unique knowledge with her classmates while also turning to them for their own expertise.  

A native of Jordan, Rawan said she grew up with only one major biotech company in her country. There was not the diversity of companies that exists in the United States, and Rawan is looking for her classmates to help her understand the different stages of organizational growth within the industry. 

What Rawan does have is professional work experience. She spent more than two years working as an administrative specialist and a research and technical writer in the medical field, and she said that knowledge can help educate her younger classmates about the realities of the professional workforce. 

“I have an understanding of all the weird factors about the workplace and the conflicts that arise,” she said. “That’s something I can bring to the table.” 

Beyond the efforts to build connection and cohesiveness among the cohort, Rawan and the board are exploring opportunities to add tours of research facilities around Northwestern to introduce students to the diverse variety of opportunities they could pursue.  

Rawan is still figuring out what she wants to pursue professionally. She has eyes for the pharmaceutical industry, but also an interest in sustainability that might translate into a career in biomaterials.  

Whichever path she takes, she is confident her MBP experience will improve her career trajectory.  

“There is a lot of support from the faculty as you go through MBP, and there are a lot of connections at the industry level,” she said. “They really do care about where you go after MBP and not just your journey in it.”