ACADEMIC PROFILE

Dr Alex completed his PhD in Computer Science at University of Technology Malaysia. He also obtained his MSc in Multimedia from Multimedia University in 2011, specialising in interactive installation, user experience, web development, new media, media innovation, motion graphic, sustainable design, augmented reality and gamification.

He received his Bmm (Hons) Creative Multimedia majoring in Digital Media from Multimedia University in 2005. He has been teaching at various local and international university including Raffles Design Institute (Shanghai) and Raffles University since 2006. He is in charge of the Learning Management System (LMS) for several campuses under the Raffles Education Group. Dr Alex has also worked in the industry since 2005 and manages his own multimedia company which focuses on web design, web/app development and consultancy.

Dr Alex’s main interest is in developing dynamic teaching method to enrich students’ learning experiences by associating theory with practical experience such as live exhibitions, visiting companies, collaborating with industry partners. He is passionate about motivating students to participate in activities and competitions to develop their self-confidence and their interest in learning and critical thinking. He has also been appointed as the chairperson for the Board of Teaching & Learning for Raffles University.

Assoc. Prof. Dr Wong Shaw Chiang is a passionate graphic design practitioner who believes that designers should use their expertise to address a wide range of issues and take a leading role in making the world a better place for all. In addition to working on commercial projects, he actively participates in various community projects such as TEDxSungaiSegget, Ihsan Johor Humanitarian Project, RUN Volunteer Network, Tong Yi Carnival, and more. These initiatives aim to promote sustainable and inclusive development within his community.

Dr Wong holds a PhD in Creative Studies, a Master’s degree in Education with a specialisation in Curriculum and Instruction, and a Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design. He is a Certified Trainer accredited by HRDF Malaysia. With over a decade of experience in tertiary education, he has taught and supervised students at the diploma, undergraduate, and master’s levels. In addition to administrative responsibilities, where he ensures all the academic programmes meet national and international quality standards and comply fully with university policies.

Dr Wong is actively engaged in research and development related to pedagogical methods for design-centric learning and graphic design practice within the context of Malaysia. To date, he has published more than 10 research papers, with most of them being published under his name as the first author.

Ms Aisyah Najib started her profession in the fashion industry for almost nine years before embarking on the field of education. She graduated from Universiti Teknologi Mara, UiTM Shah Alam, in Art and Design, majoring in Fashion and minor in Textile Design. She also gained a Postgraduate degree in Design Technology with Excellent Candidate Awards from the same university.

Her achievement includes participating in Invention, Innovation & Design Exposition (index) 2019 with Silver Awards. In addition, she is an Optitex Certified 3D Essential User from Efi Optitex USA Inc. and Telestia Certified Trainer, Clotech Atelier Academy Malaysia.

She has worked with several local and international brands in product development, production, manufacturing and fashion technology. Her technical specialisation includes pattern making, grading, and 3D body fitting. She has been exposed to the mass production of apparel, ready-to-wear, sportswear and multifunctional clothing that become comfortable for the wearer’s body fitting and cutting.

Mr Ellem Ooi is the lecturer of Faculty of Atrs & Design in Raffles University since 2018. Currently, he is in charge of teaching design and multimedia courses, as well as supervising students for their final year projects. In 2006, he obtained a Bmm (Hons) Creative Multimedia, major in Digital Media from Multimedia University. In 2018, he obtained a Masters of Instructional Design and Technology from Open University Malaysia, specialising in e-learning and educational technology.

At the beginning of his professional teaching career, he accumulated 6 years of design industry experience being an interactive graphic and web designers in Singapore and Brunei. He developed knowledge and insight in advertising, web development and internet marketing. He also dedicated over 7 years as a lecturer in Brunei and Malaysian University.

Dr Tan Hui Siang graduated from Iowa State University (ISU) with a doctoral degree in Apparel, Merchandising, and Design in 2017, focusing on bi-cultural entrepreneurship. She then taught as a lecturer in spring 2018. During her grad school, Dr Tan worked as a graduate assistant to assist faculty in teaching and research for eight years. Classes that she taught as a teaching assistant included fashion illustration, CAD, virtual retailing and product development labs, besides financial workshop of entrepreneurship. Whereas for graduate research, she mostly assisted for Iowa Retail Initiative project and student consulting projects, which aim to promote rural small business development in Iowa, USA.

Before ISU, Dr Tan was teaching online as an associate faculty for two years in United States, after receiving her master’s degree in Industrial Management. She also worked in the US retail stores for three years after earning her bachelor’s degree in Textile and Clothing in Business. Furthermore, Dr Tan graduated from LaSalle Fashion International School in Kuala Lumpur with a Fashion Design Diploma in 1998 besides years of working experience in apparel industries and tailor store in Malaysia before her further study to the US.

Ms Rachel Kim brings over a decade of education and design experience in the global fashion industry, with a footprint spanning Korea, the USA, China, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Cambodia. She has taught fashion design at international campuses in collaboration with renowned institutions such as Northumbria University (UK), Mod’art (France), and BTEC (UK). Her own educational journey includes studies in fashion design in Korea, Italy, and Spain. She holds a Master’s degree in Science in Fashion Design from Gachon University, Korea, and another Master’s degree in Fashion Design from the Istituto Europeo di Design in Barcelona, Spain.

Rachel Kim has been recognised for her excellence as a supervisor, receiving awards at the at Rio Fashion Design Contest by Sweet Life Ltd, Switzerland and Raffles Design Institute Guangzhou. In 2020, she contributed to the field with her published paper titled “Storytelling in Clothing Design: A Study of Fashion Brand ‘SEAM’ in Indonesia,” featured in the International Journal of Scientific & Technology Research.

With her profound understanding of the apparel business, encompassing garment design, production, and marketing, Rachel is passionate about teaching and guiding students in both individual and corporate settings.

Andrew Lawrence graduated with a Master’s degree from the Royal College of Art (1991) and a BA (Hons) from Ravensbourne in London (1989). He has over 30 years’ experience of practicing graphic design in London, Berlin and the USA. Clients have included British Telecom, the Ford Motor Company, Berlin Airports Authority, The Bank for International settlements in Switzerland, British Embassy in Berlin, Leeds United Football Club and Eurostar. He has recently designed a series of books about the Advertising Industry.

Passionate about design education he has taught graphic design at several UK Universities; Ravensbourne, Plymouth University and most recently at Nottingham Trent and Northumbria Universities.
 Andy has over 12 years teaching experience in China, Vietnam and Thailand where he was the Academic Leader at Raffles International College, Bangkok up until 2021.

With over 20 years of experience in the VFX industry, Mr Garth is a professional VFX artist specialising in environment design and background creation for major film and streaming productions. His career includes work with top studios such as WETA Digital, Industrial Light & Magic, Double Negative, Moving Picture Company, and Mr. X. Notable film credits include Mortal Engines (2018), Transformers One (2024), King Kong vs Godzilla (2020), The Last Duel (2021), and Sonic the Hedgehog II (2022). He has also contributed to acclaimed Netflix and Amazon Prime series, including Snowpiercer, Gen V, and Star Wars: The Acolyte.

Holding a master’s degree in art with a specialisation in Digital Arts, he is also a seasoned VFX lecturer. He has extensive teaching experience at Autodesk-certified centres, specialising in digital sculpting and modeling in ZBrush. Additionally, he has lectured in 3D Animation studies at the University of the Witwatersrand. He brings a unique blend of industry expertise and educational insight to inspire and guide future VFX professionals.

Ms Nurshamine Nariza binti Mohd Nor received her Bachelor’s Degree with Honours in Computer Science (Software Engineering) at Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS). She is pursuing a Master of Philosophy in Software Engineering at Universiti Technologi Malaysia (UTM)

Ms Shamine has rich experience in education as a research and teaching assistant at UTM. She was appointed as a Trainer for Advanced Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality at MaGICX UTM. Ms Shamine also worked as a programmer and developer in the education and financial industry.

In the area of research and publication, she has been involved in a research project related to Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) and her expertise area in Virtual Reality Sports games, User Interface (UI) & User Experience (UX) Design.

Ms Sylvia Tan Huey Wen has worked in the design industry and tertiary education institutions in Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Singapore for more than 10 years. She has extensive work experience in both academic and design industry. She was the head of design team in GIMC, Guangzhou and the creative director of Hydrogen limited, Hong Kong. Her expertise includes advertising design, advertising strategic planning, branding design, publication design and so on. During her work in advertising and design agency, she was in charge of the clients of China Telecom Global, Subaru, Shangrila Hotel, Huawei and so on.

Besides, during her teaching in Hong Kong Design Institute and Neusoft Institute Guangdong, she has leaded the students to win various international design awards such as D&AD awards, The One Show awards, HK4as Kam Fam awards and so on.

After received Diploma of Graphic Communication from Nanyang Academy of Fine Art, Singapore, Ms Sylvia Tan Huey Wen continued her studies in UK. She received her Master of Arts in Art and Design and Bachelor of Arts (First Class Honors) in Graphic Communication from Loughborough University, UK. Currently, She is pursuing her PhD degree in University Malaya, focusing of strategic communication of social media.

Ms Lew Su-Ann combines practical experience in graphic design with a passion for education.  Following her graduation with a BMM (Hons) in Creative Media from Multimedia University in 2007, she gained valuable experience working as a graphic designer in Singapore and Brunei.

Drawing on this industry knowledge, she transitioned into teaching, dedicating the past four years to instructing graphic and multimedia courses.  She is committed to helping students develop their design skills and prepare them for successful careers.

With a combined eight years of industry and academic experience, Mr Firdaus brings a unique perspective to the field of creative multimedia storytelling. A graduate of Raffles University’s prestigious Bachelor of Multimedia Design (Honours) programme, he has since cultivated a successful career that bridges the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application. For the past five years, Mr Firdaus has teaching experience in various local universities His teaching philosophy, aligned with his belief in the power of visuals, is evident in the modules he leads (Multimedia Video & Audio, Applied Photography, etc.). Going beyond lectures, he has successfully supervised award-winning final year projects.

This unique blend positions him as a valuable asset for institutions seeking exceptional creative multimedia instructors. His deep commitment to storytelling, coupled with a keen eye for detail, ensures captivating and inspiring content. Mr Firdaus is a driving force in shaping the future of visual storytelling, leaving a lasting impact with his visionary leadership and unwavering passion.

Sahar Hajirezaei is an experienced fashion designer and tailor, specialising in custom garments and client-focused design. She has held roles Tailor in Rome and Wedding House in Iran, where she developed her skills in bespoke garment creation and trend analysis.

Ms Sahar holds a Master’s and Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design from Accademia Belle Arti di Frosinone, Italy, and a Diploma from Limkokwing University, Malaysia. She also interned at the Accademia Nazionale di Danza in Rome, focusing on costume making and repairs for theatrical productions.

In addition to her academic and professional background, Ms Sahar has participated in numerous fashion shows and exhibitions, including the Alta Roma Fashion Show and the Fashion Exhibition in Milan in 2019.  She also worked backstage with Professor Ceravolo for the Turandot Theater in Rome in 2017 and won an award at the Fashion Competition Roma Sposa in 2018.