Indonesia sends 100 students to further studies in Malaysia

JAKARTA, May 30 (Bernama): A total of 100 students from five State Islamic Universities (UIN) under the Indonesian Ministry of Religion will be sent to pursue postgraduate studies at Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) starting this September.

According to a statement from the ministry, the first batch was carried out in conjunction with the Education Fund Management Board under the "Bisasiswa Indonesia Bangkit" programme.

Director General of Islamic Education Prof Dr Ali Ramdhani said UUM became the first Malaysian university to be selected for academic partnerships with the five UINs.

The five universities involved are UIN Raden Fattah Palembang, UIN Ar-Raniry Banda Aceh, UIN Mataram, UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung and UIN Sunan Ampel Surabaya.

The signing of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) took place on Monday, witnessed by the Education Attaché of the Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta Zulfadhli Hamzah and the First Secretary of Wisma Putra at the embassy Gobinath Nadradjah.

UUM vice-chancellor Prof Dr Mohd Fo'ad Sakdan said this collaboration was a recognition for the university at an international level.

"Students who meet the requirements will continue their studies and gain experience at the international level while developing holistic human resources, that can serve as professional leaders and educators.

"The Centre for Islamic Business Studies, the Centre for Multimedia and Communication Technology, and the Centre for Education Studies will be involved in this collaboration," he said. - Bernama