KUCHING – Swinburne’s Sarawak campus is in the midst of a comprehensive campus upgrade with a number of construction and campus improvement projects progressing as 2020 unfolds.
In line with its long-term commitment to enhancing the campus experience for students, up to RM50 million will be invested into transforming the campus into a world-class teaching and learning environment.
According to Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive Officer Professor John Wilson, the initiative is consistent with the aspirations of the 2025 Swinburne Strategic Plan to become a world-class university of science, technology, and innovation.
The campus upgrades support Swinburne’s mission of fostering student success, creating a positive and vibrant campus environment, and to support the university’s growing student population.
Swinburne’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive Officer Professor John Wilson.
Over the course of 2019-20, the campus is undergoing several phases of reconstruction to further modernize teaching and communal spaces. This included the upgrading of lecture halls and tutorial rooms to support student centred learning through flexible learning spaces.
During 2020-22, a significant capital works project will be undertaken to further upgrade the student accommodation, student hub, sporting facilities and the creation of a Borneo Atrium with a library extension to further improve the student experience.
The current student hostels will be revamped into a student village, which will house its fully refurbished on-campus student accommodation, laundry facilities, and a student lounge with a central communal kitchen and dining facilities to sit 80 people. The student lounge will also be the focal point for students to register for all on-campus residence reservations, collect their mail, and seek medical consultations at the clinic centre. It will be surrounded with lush landscaping, recreational space, barbecue facilities, outdoor decking, and streetscape plaza to welcome the residents to their new home.
Besides academic excellence, Swinburne also focuses importance on student welfare, with the creation of a Student Hub, which will house its sports centre for futsal, volleyball, and basketball. The Student Hub will enable a range of fun-filled activities to be enjoyed including; a large flexible leisure space, a soundproofed music studio, and multimedia room, for those who wish to channel their artistic talents. The new sports facilities are in addition to the current multi-purpose hall which houses a gym, basketball court, badminton courts and squash courts.
Additionally, a newly purpose build two-storey food hall with air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned seating areas, will serve as a dining area accommodating over 650 people. The new hall will feature 14 food and beverage stalls, convenience shop, multi-faith room, and musollah prayer rooms, to serve our diverse background students, staff and community on campus.
Meanwhile, the Borneo Atrium will be a unique central heart of the campus for students, staff and community engagement activities, concerts, and bazaars. The atrium will also be the central entrance to the library, with escalators leading up to the mezzanine floor, opening up to the new 24-hours informal learning space with an added capacity of over 350 people. This new study area will provide students with facilities for study pods, collaborative spaces, and charging stations.
Upon completion of the upgrading works, all the buildings on campus will be interconnected with covered walkways, making campus facilities easily accessible to all students, staff and community.
Photos of the proposed designs and areas can be viewed at www.swinburne.edu.my/campus-upgrades.
In commitment towards creating impactful student experiences, the campus upgrades will reinforce the university’s dedication in creating an environment that supports the success of the students and community. According to Swinburne’s Director of Administration, Caroline Hon, she commented that it would contribute towards preparing students to be future-ready learners equipped for work.
“As one of the fastest-growing universities in Malaysia, Swinburne continues to grow with the addition of state-of-the-art facilities, and innovative infrastructure. We look forward to transforming the campus into a place where students and staff can inspire and make a difference in the world,” said Hon.
The campus upgrading works is aligned to the Sarawak Government’s vision to develop a digital economy and ensure that as a major shareholder, Swinburne Sarawak continues to provide quality Australian education in a highly competitive tertiary education industry within Malaysia.
Established in 2000, Swinburne Sarawak has a student population to 3,500 of which 18% of its international students’ hail from 45 countries. The Kuching campus offers courses at foundation, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate levels where all courses taught are identical to those at the Melbourne campus.
Applications for enrolment into Swinburne’s 2020 intakes are now open. Classes will commence on 2 March for Degree programmes, and 13 April for Foundation and Diploma programmes. The university offers competitive internal scholarships and bursaries for all level of studies.
For more information about Swinburne, visit its website www.swinburne.edu.my, Facebook page (@swinburnesarawak), Instagram (@swinburnesarawak), Twitter page (@Swinburne_Swk) or YouTube channel (Swinburne Sarawak).