Nur Hidayah Bte Abu Bakar

Nur Hidayah Bte Abu Bakar serves as Dean of the Faculty of Design at LASALLE College of the Arts, Singapore, where she has transformed the faculty into a leading Southeast Asian design institution through 20+ years of teaching experience and industry expertise. She concurrently holds national appointments on the National Parks Board, National Gallery Singapore's Museum Education Advisory Panel, and DesignSingapore Council's Design Education Advisory Committee.

Her academic credentials include:

• MA (Design for Communication) from University of Central England, UK
• BA (Design) from Curtin University of Technology, Australia
• Diploma in Graphic Design from Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Singapore

Nur Hidayah's research explores the interconnectedness of design aesthetics, education, and industry through design education, visual learning methods, contemporary cities, and creative entrepreneurship. She champions interdisciplinary approaches that bridge academic theory with real-world applications, emphasizing community engagement and Southeast Asian design contexts while fostering innovation in pedagogical frameworks.

Her publication trends reveal a consistent focus on global design education frameworks, with recent works analyzing collective individualism in pedagogy, cross-cultural studio practices, and the role of design in urban environments. These studies frequently incorporate community-based methodologies and examine how design thinking addresses social challenges across Asian cities.

As an educator, Nur Hidayah has mentored generations of students toward leadership roles in Singapore's creative sector, with program successes including D&AD Student Awards and Graduate Fashion Week accolades. She spearheads initiatives like Women in Design week for female designers and industry partnerships that connect classroom learning with professional practice.

She leads collaborative projects including the Global Design Initiative (five international universities), PLACE study on creative entrepreneurship, and community design work with Cambodia's Modern Sewing Dress Factory. Her current research examines design cultures in Singapore, Seoul, and Shanghai while developing frameworks for design as a research tool in urban contexts.