Beirut Arab University
Mayssoun Azzam was born in Abu Dhabi, UAE to a Palestinian family. Her parents, Nawaf Azzam and Isaaf El-Youssef, fled Palestine to Lebanon in 1948. Her father graduated from the Beirut Arab University with a law degree. However, he was unable to practice law due to labor laws in Lebanon that restricted Palestinians from most white-collar professions. He worked as a school administrator at the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp in Sidon before moving his family to the Persian Gulf region. Mayssoun grew up in Abu Dhabi where she attended the Rosary School. She later earned her bachelor's degree in Communication Arts, emphasis in Journalism from the Lebanese American University. Her master's degree was earned at the University of London, Birkbeck, majoring in Global Politics.