After his return to MSA, he taught as an assistant lecturer for three years and was selected once more for a Scholarship to pursue his Ph.D. in the University of Greenwich with a scholarship. It was a four-year journey of academic and personal development.

Despite being on lockdown in the height of the Corona pandemic, Dr. Rafik successfully passed his Viva in December 2020, and was fully awarded his Ph.D. degree in April 2021. His thesis entitled ‘A Multidimensional Study on Place Identity in new Desert Cities. The Case of the Greater Cairo Region’ discusses how new towns in Egypt develop their identity in relation to the residents, planning, and urban policies.

Dr. Rafik is currently a Lecturer in the Architecture Engineering Department, MSA. This journey would not have been possible without the wise leadership of MSA’s founder Dr. Nawal El Degwi and many more of the University staff that know the importance of investing in their pupils with a keen eye on tomorrow.

It is worth noting that Dr Rafik is one amongst more than 100 Scholars of MSA Post graduate scholarship Programme Alumni running since 2004.