The American University in Cairo (AUC) celebrated today the opening of a university career development center in Menoufia University, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).  The opening ceremony was attended by the Governor of Menoufia, Saeed Abbas, USAID/Egypt Director of the Office of Education and Health, Wick Powers, Menoufia University President, Adel Mubarak and AUC Provost, Ehab Abdel Rahman.

AUC Provost Ehab Abdel Rahman said: "We are pleased to partner with Menoufia University in the establishment of their new career development center. The center will provide Menoufia University students with access to career guidance services, and contribute to increasing their competitiveness and employability in the job market. We appreciate the support of the USAID in funding the University Centers for Career Development in Egypt.”

Menoufia University President Adel Mubarak said: “The opening of UCCD in Menoufia University is good news to students and graduates, as it will provide them with a wide range of outstanding international training programs and career guidance to sharpen their skills and prepare them for the highly competitive labor market with the aim of reducing unemployment rates among graduates, especially that Menoufia governorate has a large number of University graduates. The center will thus create a strong link between employers looking for performance excellence, and students and graduates ready for the labor market.”

Menoufia UCCD is the 13^th center to be inaugurated out of 21 centers in 14 universities across Egypt that aim to provide one million students with access to career education.  The UCCD project works on bridging the gap between the academic education outcomes and labor market needs.

To ensure the sustainability of the career development center and its career services, AUC project team will train the UCCD staff of Menoufia University to become career service providers who are capable of providing career guidance services to university students.