Syria: Summary of Interview with May Abou Ghazaleh

Introduction 

May Abou Ghazaleh was born and raised in Syria before moving to the United States. She is an adjunct faculty member in the finance sector of the School of Business at George Mason University. She has been working at George Mason University since 2016 as the Manager of the MS in Real Estate Development Program and the Center for Real Estate Entrepreneurship. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from Damascus University in Syria, a Master of Business Administration from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona in Spain, and a Master of Science in Real Estate Development from George Mason University in Virginia. She has received multiple awards during her time at Mason, including the EagleBank Scholar award. She wants people to remember that immigration is “going to take a long time” and that “you need really to be patient.” 

Life Before Migration 

Before moving to the United States, May Abou Ghazaleh lived in Syria. She talked about what her and her family’s life was like before she made the decision to move to the United States. She said:

“My family are refugees. Originally, they are refugees from Palestine…they moved in 1948 to Syria…my father was a doctor, and…I grew up in a family that is very educated. We give a lot of importance to education. I studied in Syria. I had my bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering from Damascus University and I worked as an architect and as an urban planner for more than 15 years…in 2009 I got my master’s degree in business administration. It was a joint program between the Higher Institute of Business Administration in Damascus and the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona in Spain. In 2011, the war began in Syria. It was really tough for us at that time. The war was so cruel, destroying everything around us. Everything came to a stop. We found it hard to work and get a proper education. My two daughters were in elementary and middle school, but it was really tough for us to keep going with our lives. By 2013, I started thinking about how we could find better opportunities for a brighter future.”

Reason for Moving 

May Abou Ghazaleh moved to the United States for a couple different reasons. She shared how she moved out of Syria to pursue her education and find a better life for her family. She said:

“During that time, I believed that the best course of action for me was to invest in myself and acquire education and knowledge that would be valuable once the war in Syria came to an end. While searching for programs to apply for in the United States, my brother, a cardiologist living and working in Virginia, suggested I apply to George Mason University. It was a fortunate coincidence, because the School of Business had a master's degree program in Real Estate Development that perfectly matched my studies, experience, and ambitions at that time. I believed that with this knowledge, I could significantly contribute if an opportunity arose to return and rebuild Syria. Back in 2013-2014, we still had great hope that things would eventually return to normal. I was hopeful that we could overcome all the challenges and rebuild Syria. However, looking now in 2023, everything has drastically changed. Unfortunately, I can no longer envision a future where I can go back to Syria. For that to happen, everything needs to change – the administration, the regime, the corruption, and the ongoing conflict. Only then can we begin to discuss the possibility of rebuilding Syria.”

Perceptions of the United States 

May Abou Ghazaleh had a view of what she thought the United States would be like before she arrived. She talked about how what she saw in American media was not representative of the reality of the United States. She said:

“What we get in our countries [about the United States] is what we see on TV … which … doesn't really reflect the real lifestyle of American people and how hardworking they are, how committed they are…The land of opportunities. [We had the impression that] once you are there, whatever you dream becomes true. This is how we would think about it. We understand about how advanced they [the United States] are in education, in medicine, in public services, all those types of things… The Hollywood theme is still in our mind about the U.S. … it does not give justice to the American people. So if you are going to ask me what my perception was after I came here, I can say it was like whatever positive thinking I had, it's more positive now. But the only thing now I can tell: this country, everything in this country was the result of very hardworking [people] in this country. If you are not a hard worker, if you are not very patient and give time for everything, you can't just get what you want…You really need to work, you need to get educated, you need to understand everything to be able to get into the system. And the system is not easy, but it is welcoming.”

Challenges 

Since moving to the United States, Ghazaleh has experienced some challenges. She recalled that most of the challenges she faced were due to immigration processes. She talked about how documents such as work permissions actually made it harder to find steady work. She said:

“It's not really easy to find a job … without worrying about [whether] your work permissions would expire… [it takes] a lot of time for the immigration [system] to renew our work permissions… I [was] always afraid of losing my job if I wasn’t able to renew my work permission on time. That's why I applied for two work permissions…they overlap for seven months just to keep me protected and covered always…Everything is related to this work permission, which is our life now…In a lot of private sectors, they will not hire you if you are a temporary status because they believe that they need to offer you training, they need to work with you. So, they don't know that you're going to stay long… enough with them. They might not want to hire you. It can be hard for people to find a stable long-term job where you can build your career. For me now, I can say I'm building a career and experience, higher education, which is a great career path.”

Accomplishments and Future Aspirations 

May Abou Ghazaleh has accomplished many things since her arrival in the United States. She discussed some of her achievements that she is the proudest of including the work she has done at Mason. She said:

“Getting my master's degree and being a part of Mason really gives me a lot of [pride]… I feel proud and I think the awards I got from Mason, especially with the first one, have made a great difference in my life. I was still an international student in my first year when I received the EagleBank Scholarship. I was nominated for it and didn't apply. The nomination at that time was based on merit and hardwork. … I will never forget how happy I was to be nominated, approved, and a recipient of it.” 

She also talked about personal and career-oriented goals that she is aiming to achieve in the future. She said:

“I just got a certificate in career coaching. So, this is one of the things I would like to work on. We are helping our students in career coaching, and my next step is … applying for a  PhD in communications and I would like to be specialized in diversity and inclusion. I know how important this is, because I was in that situation of understanding how important [it is] to be included in a new community and feel as if you are part of this community … I want to learn more about how I can help with this critical issue, not only here in the United States but more in the Middle East, where we have different understandings of implementing diversity and inclusion. It's going to be a long-term goal. If I ever get approved for a green card through my asylum case, then I will be able to move around and do more international or global work that can benefit me and whoever I'm working with.”

Message About Immigration 

Towards the end of the interview, we asked Ghazaleh what she wishes other people knew about immigration. She had some advice for others who might come to the United States. She said: 

“If you are ever going to come here to the United States as a refugee, you need to make sure that at least your family should be with you, because it's going to take a long time. You need to be patient, work on yourself, and get educated as much as possible. Plan for the future, and don’t hold your life just waiting for something to happen. Be the one that creates the opportunities, and be active and work on yourself. When it’s the time, your papers will come, but in the meantime, keep active.”

You can learn more about May Abou Ghazaleh here.