Supply Chain and Logistics Technology master's degree student Suhaib Kaissi is breaking down the boundaries between student, academic, and industry professional while keeping a keen eye focused on the future.
"I am from Iraq, but I am also a proud Hungarian. I've been working in oil and gas for almost 13 years, and have spent time in procurement, supply chain, risk management, contract management, value chain optimization reporting and digital transformation. Spending 13 years in one place… there's growth, but there were things I wanted to do to take it to the next level, to join the places where things are happening," said Kaissi.
Kaissi felt that his interest in energy transition wasn't being served in Europe the way it could elsewhere, and "on a personal level, [he] knew [he] had to make some changes."
After speaking at several events in Houston last year, he "saw a different level of conversation regarding the industry and technology for the future" compared to what he'd seen elsewhere.
"Texas is a very traditional oil and gas state, so when I saw that there's also a very strong move toward an interest in future alternatives and expansion in new energies, I knew I wanted to be a part of this," he said.
"As an international student, I could see that the University of Houston and SCLT were a really good spot to plant my feet. I saw that the SCLT program is super active outside their academic research compared to other programs offered by other universities," said Kaissi, who was drawn to the SCLT program's media presence and its activity in local industry in addition to academic research work.
“Houston hosts an overwhelming number of events every month—so many that it's impossible to count them all on your fingers. Thankfully, they are excellent resources available to help you stay updated on the latest happenings in the industry," he added.
The reasonable cost of attendance and availability of local scholarship funding were additional benefits to studying at the University of Houston. In 2024, Kaissi received not one but two scholarships from local industry partners – the Houston Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association (HCBFFA) and Transportation Club of Houston – in an accomplishment that mentor and SCLT Program Director Margaret Kidd called "rare" and "prestigious".
"I am truly honored and thankful for these awards that I received after my first semester, and I am not stopping here. I’m also happy to see that decision makers, companies, and even politicians are becoming more aware that international students are part of the ecosystem and value generation in Texas. Those students coming from far away, making all those sacrifices, tend to be more resilient and more open to getting out of their comfort zones - to really crush stones and break walls to make things happen. Those students are of a great value for the United States. They should not be neglected," said Kaissi.
"When I was in Iraq, I received a scholarship from the US Department of State to come to the US for an Exchange Program. They paid my time, my flight, my hotel, my school – everything. It was a great experience. I returned to Iraq, and now after 15 years, their investment has paid off. They invested in me with that scholarship, and the first country I looked at when I was ready to make a change was the US. I came here because I knew that I belong here, and someone believed in me in the past all those years ago. I was sure I’d be able to find those who would believe in me for the future. When you invest in someone, your investment will come back to you."
Kaissi is certainly investing in himself. After earning his BS and MBA, he returned to academia to complete a postgraduate program focusing on artificial intelligence through the University of Texas at Austin and is now pursuing his second master's degree in SCLT. He also serves as a board member at the UH Energy Coalition student organization and has taken a leading role in the 2025 Port of the Future conference, which will host more than 57 global ports at the Hilton University of Houston.
"Do you think it's too much, what I do?" he asked. "Or is the bare minimum to be able to really serve our communities, generate real value and thrive in a competitive market?"
"These days, the traditional way of learning is not enough," Kaissi said. "It's not enough to learn only from the classroom. You need to go to conferences. You need to join student organizations. You need to talk to people, network, read articles, volunteer…. With all respect to their experience and knowledge of the industry, it's not enough to sit and listen to one professor. You need to keep yourself up to date on what's going on. This is what I tell my students as a TA, and this is also what I'm doing for myself: I'm learning from others."