Lana Alabbasi and Mohammed Alharthi have won the prestigious Rhodes Scholarships for Saudi Arabia this year.
They will be heading to the University of Oxford in October 2025 to join a cohort of more than a 100 scholars from around the world to undertake fully funded postgraduate studies and become part of a strong community of young people determined to make a positive difference in the world.
The Rhodes Scholarship is the world’s preeminent and oldest graduate fellowship, based at the University of Oxford since 1903. The first Saudi Arabia scholarship was established in 2018 with a gift from Muhammad Alagil, and a second was added in 2020 with a gift from Abdulrahman Alagil Sons. The donors are co-founders of Jarir Bookstores and made their gifts in collaboration with the Saudi Ministry of Education.
Education is one of the core elements of Vision 2030, the Kingdom’s ambitious blueprint for the future. The Rhodes Scholarships enable outstanding students from across the Kingdom to fully develop their skills and knowledge in the fields that will help Saudi Arabia achieve its goals under Vision 2030. This year, exceptional circumstances enabled the award of a third Rhodes Scholarship for Saudi Arabia.
Students from anywhere in the world can apply for a Rhodes Scholarship and many find that taking part in the rigorous selection process is a profoundly positive experience, which leaves them well placed to go on to a Rhodes Scholarship or other opportunities worldwide.
The Rhodes selection process aims to choose young people with proven academic excellence who also show exceptional character, leadership, the energy to use their talents to the full and a commitment to solving humanity’s challenges. The selection process includes a rigorous review process before the finalists interview with a selection committee composed of renowned experts and leaders in diverse fields.
Rhodes Scholars form a lifelong community of people in many fields and careers, united by a commitment to having a positive impact on the world. This year’s winners continue this legacy of excellence. They include:
- Lana Alabbasi is a senior at King Abdulaziz University majoring in physics with a focus on astrophysics. She recently completed a research fellowship at the California Institute of Technology, where she studied neutron star collisions. In addition, she was an Astrophysics Cambridge Future Scholar at the Cambridge Center for International Research, researching black holes, and worked as a research assistant at King Abdulaziz University on a published study in particle physics. Alabbasi is the founder and director of the Falak Research Program, Saudi Arabia’s first mentorship initiative in space science, which connects students with experts from around the world. She plans to apply for the DPhil in astrophysics at Oxford.
- Mohammed Alharthi is a senior at University of California Los Angeles majoring in mathematics/ economics and in political science with a specialization in international relations. He interned with McKinsey and Company and at the United Nations Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs. He is also the co-founder and chief strategy officer of Furas, a startup dedicated to expanding internship opportunities for young Saudis. In his free time, he enjoys playing padel, competing in the card game Baloot, and public speaking. At Oxford, he plans to apply for the MSc in global governance and diplomacy.
Dr. Elizabeth Kiss, CEO of the Rhodes Trust, said: “We are excited to see the tremendous talents of this year’s Rhodes Scholars Elect, who come from countries all around the world. We know from 120 years of bringing exceptional people to Oxford to study and build a dynamic global community, that when unlikeminded but likehearted people come together, we can forge brighter futures for individuals and the world.”
Professor Christian Sahner, national secretary of the Rhodes Scholarships for Saudi Arabia, said they are “all exceptional young people and richly deserving of this fantastic opportunity. The selection committee was very impressed by their past achievements and confident of the positive impact they will have on Saudi Arabia and the world going forward.”
The Rhodes Trust is committed to ensuring that the world’s diversity of background and thought is reflected at Rhodes House, which has expanded the scholarship to include Global Scholarships and new constituencies in recent years.
Applications for the 2026 Rhodes Scholarships will open in June 2025. More information about the scholarship application can be found at: www.rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk/apply.
