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The Faculty of Art and Design at Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ»ÆƬ hosted an Industry Day to bridge the gap between academia and the art and design industry. The event gathered industry leaders and academic professionals to discuss aligning the university’s educational programmes with current industry standards and career requirements.

Key objectives included strengthening collaboration between the faculty and industry, refining curricula to better prepare students for professional challenges, and enhancing career readiness by integrating industry-recommended skills into academic offerings. 

The event witnessed the attendance of impressive array of VIP guests and board members, including:

• Mr. Amr Orensa, Chair of the Industry Advisory Board (IAB) and Design Manager at Pinocchio Furniture
• Mr. Karim El Hayawan, Founder of Design Point Studio
• Mr. Karim Shafei, Co-founder and Chairman of Al Ismaelia for Real Estate Investment
• Eng. Waleed Arafa, Founder and Principal of Dar Arafa Architecture
• Eng. Mohamed Lotfy, Co-founder and Chief Design Officer (CDO) of LOAK Designs
• Ms. Mona Hussien, Founder of MHDH
• Mr. Waly Dolaty, Vice Chairman of TAMEER
• Dr. Dalila El Kerdani, Owner of MIMAR
• Mr. Hisham Mahdy, Founder of Cairo Design Week
• Mr. Wael Refaat Ragheb, Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at SITA Incubator
• Mr. Khaled Hafez, Founder of Cairo Institute of the Arts and Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts
• Mrs. Marie Louis Bishara, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Bishara for Fashion (BTM)
• Ms. Anne Marie Kirollos, Head of Creative at Bishara Textile Manufacturing Co. (BTM)
• Mr. Mohamed Samy, Founder of Maison Samy
• Prof. Nagla Samir, Director of the Graphic Design Programme and Associate Professor of Practice at the American University in Cairo (AUC)
• Mr. Boulos Isaac, Partner at D&B Graphics for Fine Art Printing
• Ms. Marwa Abou Leila, Founder of Photopia
• Dr. Abdelaziz Elwassify, Digital Media Lecturer at Coventry University and Creative Director and Branding Consultant at MZ Creative Co.
• Prof. Salma Kamel, Board Member of Directors and Certified Trainer at the Centre of Research and Training of Leaders, Faculty of Social Work, Helwan University
• Prof. Sawsan Mohamed Ezzat, Professor of Cinema, Photography, and Television Department at October 6 University
• Mr. Kareem Nabeel, Founder of InFocus Photography Club. 

Throughout the day, key discussions centred around the evaluation of the faculty's current curricula and programmes. Industry representatives provided constructive feedback on how effectively these academic offerings are preparing students for real-world challenges. Specific areas for improvement were identified, and potential updates were discussed to ensure that the programmes meet industry expectations and trends.

The guests also reviewed the faculty's graduation projects, offering critical insights and suggestions to better align these projects with the demands of the industry. Moreover, the event facilitated discussions on future collaboration between the faculty and industry professionals, including potential partnerships, internships, and joint projects that would provide mutual benefits.