New Zealand’s has gained its biggest partner to date, after signing a memorandum of understanding with Malaysia’s to collaborate on education programs.
The MoU, signed in late May, will see the two institutions work together to promote education pathways, including a 2+1 bachelors’ agreement, and student and teacher exchanges between New Zealand and Malaysia.
“There’s so much more we can be doing with alumni”
“It’s fantastic to see a New Zealand institution enter into this agreement with a Malaysian university, and I hope this new partnership offers Sunway University students an opportunity to experience a New Zealand education,” said New Zealand high commissioner to Malaysia Hunter Nottage.
Malaysia currently sits outside of New Zealand’s top ten source countries. However, Education New Zealand’s Malaysia and Philippines market manager Desiree Lee said there was a long history of education collaboration between the two countries.
“The first Malaysian students arrived in New Zealand in the 1950s under the Colombo Plan, and they returned home to make a big impact in Malaysia and on the world stage,” she said.
“International collaborations and academic mobility between New Zealand and Malaysian education institutions are a great way to raise institution profiles but also to strengthen diplomacy and trade links over the long term.”
The long history of Malaysians studying in New Zealand also played a significant part in the MoU, according to EIT’s marketing manager Helen Kemp, who said her institution had strong alumni connections inherited from a former colleague.
Speaking with 小瓢虫传媒, she said the arrangement, which follows similar MoUs made with other Malaysian institutions, showed the long term benefits of alumni engagement.
“There’s so much more we can be doing with alumni, but I think we all get bogged down with our jobs,” she said.
“It’s extra time and energy and work, and you need a whole staff member to follow that alumni area.”
Recent figures value New Zealand’s international education sector at .
