Maral Akbarianvaryan

Maral Akbarianvaryan serves as an instructor at Wayne State University, where she has taught design process classes for the past three years. With about eight years of experience in her field, she began her career in Iran working as an industrial designer across various areas including shoe design and architectural and interior design projects before moving to the United States approximately two years ago to pursue further studies. She earned her undergraduate degree in industrial design and completed a master's degree in fine arts at Wayne State University, concentrating in industrial design and user research or user experience with a focus on health. In addition, she obtained a project management certification. Maral's work emphasizes understanding people's needs through user research and design processes, particularly in areas related to mental health care. She values communication and empathy in both her professional and personal life and credits her success to her ability to communicate and socialize, which helped her build a strong network in her new city. The best career advice she received was to trust in her knowledge and teach others what she knows, guidance that has shaped her approach to instructing students.