Beyond the Books: Navigating the PhD Journey Together

Information Systems PhD 2024 graduates, Esraa Abdelhalim and Ahmed Mohamadean have more in common than their academic interests. Esraa and Ahmed, who met and married after their master’s studies in Egypt, both chose to continue their academic endeavours at DeGroote. The couple discussed their journey of navigating new beginnings together while working to complete their respective PhDs.

Why did you decide to pursue your PhD, and why DeGroote?

“Attending McMaster has always been a dream of mine,” says Esraa. “One of my supervisors in my home country recommended DeGroote because it has such a strong PhD program. Your supervisor contributes heavily towards your success in the doctoral program at DeGroote. Having Dr. Hassanein and Dr. Head as my co-supervisors has made this journey a life-changing experience.”

Esraa and Ahmed, with their mutual interest in Information Systems, were jointly supervised by Dr. Hassanein.

“My passion for getting a PhD started after completing my master’s degree. I read an article entitled “What it means to be a professor”, and started to think about what I would be able to do with a PhD,” explains Ahmed.

What attracted you to Information Systems?

“From the beginning I was always keen on learning about technology. What really interested me about Information Systems was the intersection of people and technology and how they may interplay,” says Ahmed. “Information Systems isn’t purely about technology or sociology. It’s about understanding how people perceive technology and how it will shape us as a society and continue to impact our lives for years to come.”

Ahmed’s research thesis examines blockchain technology, in addition to people’s perceptions of technological trust.

Esraa’s thesis focuses on enabling AI to collaborate with people as social actors, recognizing their concerns, and outlining the potential advantages of this technology. Then she tested an AI model to understand people’s perceptions when collaborating with AI.

You also had a baby while finishing your PhDs, can you tell us about how you balance school and life?

“If you learn how to manage your time, you can be effective in anything you do. You need to be able to perceive the time you have and be realistic with how much time things require,” says Ahmed. “It can be difficult to balance school and family life, so it’s important to remember to take care of your own wellbeing. Doing things that you enjoy, like exercising, which can also help your mental health, are really important and something that every PhD student should consider.”

“We never felt pressured in any way. Our supervisors always encouraged us to prioritize our health, mental wellbeing, and family. Research and balancing other commitments are really a challenge. It’s important to learn some time management skills so you can prioritize your tasks and fill the time that you do have,” explains Esraa.

You are both graduating this spring, how special of a moment will this be for your family? 

“This is a moment to celebrate. We left our country, family, and everything behind — we started from scratch when we came here for this program. With our convocation we’re able to look back and see our transformation over the past six years and all the special moments that happened to us during our PhD,” says Esraa. “It’s also nice for our daughter to see us graduating so she can learn at an early stage of life that education is important and a continuous process.”