Rebeca Goulart still recalls the day she was offered a full scholarship to study at KFUPM and complete her undergraduate degree in Saudi Arabia.

“I said, ‘I am in!’,” recalled Goulart of the moment she received a phone call from University representatives offering the unique opportunity to live and study in the Middle East.

“The award to come to KFUPM changed my life.”

Goulart and her classmate Eloah Padrone both won the scholarship for a science fair project they started together in Rio de Janeiro while high school students. The girls took their project – an electronic device that helps people suffering from Foot Drop Syndrome (FDS) – through the science fair circuit in their home country, which led to an entry spot in the Regeneron ISEF 2023 Society for Science event in Dallas, Texas.

It was at Regeneron ISEF where their project, Electronic Device to Aid in the Correction of Foot Drop Syndrome, won them both a spot at KFUPM as part of the King Abdulaziz and his Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba) scholarship program. Mawhiba seeks to build a sustainable future by encouraging youth around the world to search for innovative means toward developing concepts in relevant fields of study.

Goulart and her partner spent two years developing their winning project. It’s a device that attaches to the calf of a person with FDS. When the person takes a step, it manually raises the toe area of a person’s foot to improve their step.

The research fits perfectly with her academic goals at KFUPM, she said. “I’ve always been passionate about biomedical devices, about how they work, and how they can impact peoples’ lives.”

She sees a bright career in the field of bioengineering.

“My biggest career goal is to own a company that specializes in creating biomedical devices that can help people with disabilities daily.”

While she knew KFUPM would advance her professional goals, she admits she was nervous about what lay ahead. But on walking into her English class, she said she was pleasantly surprised to find it filled with smiling Saudi girls all eager to know more about her.

“On my first day I was feeling very scared, not knowing what to expect,” she said. “My English classmates were so welcoming to me. I always tell my parents that the people are so nice and care very much about me.”

These classmates have become some of her closest friends since arriving to KFUPM in January 2024.

“I have more friends here than in Brazil!”

One of Goulart’s biggest surprises since coming to the University is the high-quality housing. She said she didn’t expect to find a modern, well-appointed apartment that she was assigned to share with Padrone.

Another pleasant surprise was the care and attention KFUPM made as she transitioned to the region. She said a Student Guide was assigned to her that helped greatly with navigating both the campus and the surrounding towns. Her guide was in touch by chat even before she arrived in Kingdom, and after arriving, took her and Padrone out, showing them the best places in town to eat and enjoy the atmosphere.

Another fun thing she said she enjoys are university-organized day trips to historical areas in the region, such as the Kingdom’s date palm capitol, Al Hasa, which is home to more than two million date palms.

When asked if KFUPM has met her expectations, Goulart said, “KFUPM has gone above and beyond whatever I could have expected it to be.”

Regeneron ISEF 2023 Society for Science

King Abdulaziz & his Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity

King Abdulaziz & His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity, “Mawhiba,” is a national educational foundation in Saudi Arabia established to help cultivate a comprehensive environment of creativity. The organization seeks to build a sustainable future by encouraging youth around the world to search for innovative means toward developing concepts in relevant fields of study. To support this goal, Mawhiba began participating at ISEF in 2007 in order to promote acoustics and recognize the accomplishments of pre-college students.

Full Scholarship from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals

• ENBM008T — Electronic Device to Aid in the Correction of Foot Drop Syndrome
  Eloah Marvila Padrone, Escola Tecnica Estadual Henrique Lage, Niteroi, Brazil
  Rebeca Apolinario Goulart, Escola Tecnica Estadual Henrique Lage, Niteroi, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil