Fez — The second day of the HR Forum 2025 at the Private University of Fez (UPF) turned the spotlight on students from partner institutions across the Fez–Meknes region.
“This is the second day of the 10th edition of the HR Forum,” said Khalid El Ouadi, Head of External Relations at UPF, in an interview with Morocco World News (MWN). “Today is reserved for students of the institutes with which we have partnerships, especially students coming from OFPPT, to show that UPF is not limited only to the students of the university, but we are open to all the regions of Fez and Meknes.”
The shift confirmed the forum’s ambition to act as a regional platform, not just a campus event.
Partner students testing the waters
Among the guests was 21-year-old culinary arts student Ismail El Hammoumi from OFPPT. He came with a clear goal which he shared with MWN.
“I came to the forum because I intend to look for sponsors and colleagues from a lot of types of workers,” he said. Although he described himself as having “minimal experience” with this kind of event, he hoped that the meetings and interviews with professionals and investors would happen “in an elegant and respectful way.”
For many visiting students, the second day was a first contact with recruiters and an early rehearsal for future job interviews.
Recruiters scouting new profiles
Companies also used the day to connect with talent from beyond UPF’s programs. Moore Consulting, an audit and accounting firm based in Casablanca, was among the participants.
“We are here today to help UPF students integrate into the world of work,” said manager Badreddine M’stafa to MWN. The objective, he added, is to meet Fassi students, explain the firm’s vocation and activities, and recruit profiles who could join “during the next fiscal period.”
He described the event as “very successful,” pointing to the high number of partners present. For Moore Consulting, the forum is “very enriching” because it offers a clear picture of competences in the Fez–Meknes region and helps find the profiles the firm is “always looking for” in a sector where demand is strong. It is also an opportunity, he said, “to get closer to young students and give them the motivation they need to integrate into the world of work.”
Students learning by organizing
The forum also served as a training ground for UPF students on the organizing side.
Chaymae Khlifi Hassani, a first year preparatory class student at UPF, told MWN that being involved in the HR Forum 2025–2026 is “a great experience because we develop our personality and our professional career.”
Third-year commerce, sales, and marketing student Hiba Lemnazzah was involved in a similar way. As head of internal communications at the student office, she helped coordinate the second day and shared her experience with MWN:
“I have the pleasure of being a member of the committee because it helps me to develop my skills, my personality, to meet people, to get to know people,” she said. For her, the forum is “very relevant, very interesting” for students’ coursework because it helps them find internships and jobs “in all the cities of Morocco,” including the wider Fez region.
A forum that grows beyond campus
By opening its second day to OFPPT and other partner institutes, the HR Forum 2025 confirmed its wider scope. Over two days, the UPF turned its campus into a shared space where students from across Fez–Meknes could meet recruiters, test their ambitions, and start building the bridges they will need to enter the job market.
