India’s OP Jindal Global University (JGU) has signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with six leading universities in Malaysia and opened new vistas for its students and researchers by forging ties with several other prominent universities in the Southeast Asia region. The agreements were signed during the visit of a high-level JGU delegation headed by its founding Vice-Chancellor, Professor (Dr) C Raj Kumar, to Malaysia recently.
These partnerships are aimed at increasing substantive opportunities for students and researchers of their respective countries through exchange programmes, joint, dual and pathways degree programmes, short-term study abroad programmes, joint conferences and joint lectures leading to joint research projects and publications that encourage innovation and cross-cultural perspectives, joint online degree programmes; and promoting collaborations among all stakeholders in India and the Southeast Asia region, including government agencies, public institutions, private corporations, think tanks and research institutions.
“At present, in both India and Malaysia, nearly half of the population is under the age of 30. While this presents us with an opportunity to reap demographic dividends, as educational institutions, it also becomes our responsibility to do everything in our power to help the youth of our countries to maximise their potential to excel in areas of their interests,” Professor Kumar said.
Among the various initiatives proposed by the universities, the leaders of the National University of Singapore (NUS) expressed interest in student exchange programmes with JGU through short term study abroad programmes. NUS also showed keenness in partnering with JGU for its NUS Overseas Colleges (NOC) Programme, which is an internship programme with strong emphasis on technology entrepreneurship. Under this programme, students are required to spend either 3, 6 or 12 months at technology hubs around the world, working as a full-time intern while studying part-time in a prestigious university in the region.