KUCHING – The Deputy High Commissioner of Australia to Malaysia, Jane Duke, is impressed with the rapid growth of Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus and the high quality of education it offers.
Duke was recently on a two-day visit to the city when she stopped by at the Australian branch campus university. Swinburne’s home campus is located in Melbourne.
Welcoming her to the Sarawak campus was Professor Ken Heskin, Acting Pro Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive, and Datuk Dr Philip Ting, Australian Honorary Consul as well as a member of the university council, and director.
Duke, who assumed her position in September last year, also toured the campus and spoke to students and staff.
“The particular campus here and its development over the last 10 years are very impressive … it offers a high quality education for Malaysian students and other international students who want to have an Australian qualification here in Malaysia,” she said after a brief discussion with Heskin, Ting and the senior management team of Swinburne Sarawak.
Duke was pleased to learn that the university has been growing quickly since it was established in 2000 where it started with only about a hundred students. She was impressed when told that the student population has now peaked to 4,000 including about 800 students from 52 countries.
“I spoke to Eritrean and Nigerian students at the science labs and I asked them why (they chose) Malaysia. They said it’s because of reputation and cost.”
She was happy to note that students from Swinburne’s home campus in Melbourne also choose to do part of their studies at Swinburne Sarawak through an exchange program each year.
On research undertaken by the university, Duke said: “It’s a very positive development to have a research facility added to the university. It will add a lot of prestige and a lot of capability and I’m sure that will be very positive to the people of Sarawak and also to Swinburne in Australia.”
Heskin had earlier said that the university has been conducting research for several years, particularly in engineering and computing, and that Swinburne Sarawak is developing its research capacity.