Walid was the top student in mathematics at Birzeit University in the graduating class of 1995-96. He graduated with a grade point average of 92 percent, in a university where grades above 85 percent are considered excellent.

In the spring of 1996, he was preparing for his final seminar in applied mathematics when he was arrested for the third time in his academic career in the raid of 28 March. He was beaten black and blue during his arrest before being shipped off to Gaza.

An exceptional student, Walid had planned to make his final seminar "like a festival", a culmination of all he had studied to date. Instead, he found himself in Gaza negotiating with Birzeit University to allow him to complete his studies from Gaza.

In a compromise with the university, he was permitted to complete his final semester at the Islamic University in Gaza. He recalls this period with particular pain, "At the conclusion of my baccalaureate, I faced a brand new system—new professors, new colleagues. Even though I finished my degree requirements, I never felt like I completed what I began."