News @ SSE
AUC Students Win in Mechanical Engineering Competition
Two AUC students won an Elevator Pitch competition at the American Society of Mechanical Engineers EFx (e-fest) Cairo 2023, which took place at the New Cairo campus. Mechanical engineering majors Zahwa Kortam and Abdallah Sabah placed first and second, respectively.
AUC Student to Join First Cohort of Landmark Scholarship Program in Canada
Mechanical engineering undergraduate student Reem Mahmoud is one of 30 global recipients of the McCall MacBain Scholarships at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. The scholarships are the result of a landmark C$200 million gift (about E£4,4 billion) in 2019 by John and Marcy McCall MacBain, the second-largest single donation in Canadian history.
Supporting Startups: AUC Hosts First Afretec Entrepreneurship Conference
Entrepreneurship is a key component of Africa’s economic progress, but gaps between research, investing and implementation may hinder a startup’s success. AUC assisted in filling these gaps by hosting the first entrepreneurship workshop of the Afretec Network, an international organization that aims to encourage digital growth through the collaboration of higher education and the private and public sectors throughout Africa.
Transforming Dirty Water into Clean Energy
A bolt of energy rattles the bonds of a water molecule: H2O. The links between the molecule begin to snap as the oxygen and hydrogen particles are pulled to separate compartments. The hydrogen molecules are collected and pressurized until their gaseous form transforms into a liquid, the process guiding these powerful particles to their new life: green energy.
Ramadan from the Heart of Cairo
International student Sara Carere has never experienced a month quite like Ramadan in Egypt.
AUC Students Craft Sustainable Fishing Nets to Revive Local Village Economy
Armed with fruit and a desire to help the small Egyptian village of El Bahtiny in Ismailia, seniors Yara Yousry, Heidi Mahmoud, Aliaa Moussa and Mariam El-Halabi are working to fashion biodegradable fishing nets out of locally sourced, cost-effective banana fibers in order to revive the village’s ailing economy.
AUC Faculty Develop New Courses on Climate Change, Sustainability During 2023 Research and Creativity Convention
Two courses aimed at informing and empowering AUC students to lead the charge against climate change won this year’s Core Curriculum Course Competition during AUC’s 2023 Research and Creativity Convention (RCC).
Sherif Aly First from Region to Join Prestigious Accreditation Executive Committee
Sherif Aly ‘96, professor and chair of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, has become the first person from the MENA region to join the executive committee of the Computing Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (
Earthquakes in Egypt? Tremors in Suez Raise Concerns
The recent earthquake that struck Suez in February was moderate and caused no reported injuries or damages.
AUC Department of Construction Uses Virtual Reality to Teach Site Safety
Faculty members and graduate students from AUC’s Department of Construction Engineering are using virtual reality (VR) to develop and deploy training models that will improve safety at construction sites. These training models allow students to navigate construction sites of bridges and high-rise buildings using VR headsets to visualize hazards, including falls, struck-by injuries, slips and general construction site safety.
AUC Master's Student Creates Arabic Chatbot to Promote Brain Health
Developed by Asmaa Saeed, a public health master’s student in AUC’s Institute of Global Health and Human Ecology, the Arabic-speaking bot seeks to teach Arab individuals ways to improve their brain health in a conversational manner, such as giving advice on maintaining healthy eating habits or referring individuals to mental health websites and resources.
AUC faculty and students on a site visit to Baheya.
In light of a fruitful collaboration between the AUC Department of Construction Engineering, Department of Architecture and Baheya Foundation for Early Detection and Treatment of Breast Cancer, our undergraduate students visited the construction site of the new Baheya hospital in Sheikh Zayed city. The visit had educational and philanthropic components; where the students observed the construction engineering aspects of the project and demonstrated their support to such a noble philanthropic endeavor.
Students from AUC, United States Address Inequality Through Art
This fall, students from AUC and City University of New York collaborated virtually to study income and wealth disparity in Egypt and the United States. Using art, these students aimed to increase awareness about inequality under the collaborative Global Scholars Achieving Career Success (GSACS) program.
100 PhDs in Africa Awardee Shimaa Heikal (MSc '22) Pilots Data Project on Dementia in Egypt
Pioneering a research registry on novel biomarkers found in early stages of dementia within the Egyptian population, Shimaa Heikal (MSc '22), PhD candidate at AUC’s Institute of Global Health and Human Ecology (I-GHHE), is among the first 10 awardees for the 100 PhDs in Africa program.
AUC Receives $86 Million USAID Grant, Largest in University History, for Scholarships and Training
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has awarded The American University in Cairo (AUC) $86 million for USAID Egyptian Pioneers, a new program that provides scholarships and training to Egyptian students with emphasis on sectors that can advance Egypt’s climate goals.
SSE in Motion
Award-Winning Faculty Spotlight: Mohamed Salama
AUC Students Conceive Masterplan for Egypt's First-of-Its-Kind College Town
AUC Research Fights the Climate Change Crisis
Strengthening Ceramics Research Published in Top-Tier Academic Journal
Professor Hesham Sallam: Spotlight on Paleontology in Egypt
Building on Mars - AUC Students Create Concrete for Planet Mars
Chasing Circuits: AUC Launches Suitera Spinoff
AUC Professor Hesham Sallam discusses the discovery of a 34- million-year-old rodent
World’s First Comprehensive North African Reference Genome
Interview with Nataly Naser Al Deen ‘13, one of Forbes Middle East’s 30 Under 30
