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Amira Firdaus is an Associate Professor at Universiti Malaya’s Department of Media and Communication Studies, Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences. Amira is also the Deputy Director for Professional Development & Academic Excellence at UM's Academic Development & Enhancement Centre (ADEC).

Amira's core expertise is Positive/Constructive Communication with practical and conceptual applications across three fields: Communication, Higher Education, and Positive Psychology. Within these areas, Amira's interest in positive/constructive communication is implicitly integrated into her work in digital ethnography, e-learning, constructive journalism, positive education, positive organizations, and active ageing.   Amira's current multidisciplinary foci include: Adult ADHD/ADD media and communication; faculty wellbeing & happiness; online learning instructional design & communication; empathetic/inclusive instructional communication. 

Amira formerly served as ADEC's first Head for Leadership & Wellbeing (LeadWell) (2016-2018), a unit she helped to establish. LeadWell is one of the earliest efforts among Malaysian universities to include personal growth, wellbeing and happiness on the training agenda for academic staff.  Prior to LeadWell, Amira was the Head and Coordinator of the Emerging Academics Learning & Development (EMERALD) program, ADEC's flaghship training program for new academic staff.

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Amira played a key role in the #UMTeachOnline campaign assisting UM lecturers in their shift from physical to fully online classes. Alongside a highly agile ADC team, Amira helped to organize, design, and conduct training webinars and workshops for remote teaching, as well as personal wellbeing. 

Amira has a deep interest in the career development and wellbeing of early career academics, including postgraduate students. She enjoys close mentoring relationships with her many of her PhD and Masters students, and occasionally conducts postgraduate research talks and mentoring clinics for others. She also provides peer mentoring for new academic staff, as well as academic staff new to online teaching.

In both teaching & learning (T&L), professional development & training, as well as supervision and mentoring, Amira practices constructive communication and makes conscious effort to create a safe space for learning in a participatory and social constructionist environment. Amira values collegiality and community and believes that a growth-mindset is essential to develop and enhance strengths, overcome weaknesses, and foster resilience.   

Amira holds a PhD in communication from the University of Melbourne, where her thesis was suggested for The Chancellor's Prize by her external examiner*.  She is also a recently-certified Virtual LearnCaters (VLC), an international certification for online teachers and trainers.

PhD Supervisors: Ingrid Volkmer & David Nolan;
PhD Thesis Chair & External Examiners: Robert Hassan; Stephen Reese; Brian McNair
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