July 2, 2018
New horizons: Kaplan Singapore’s Provost Rhys Johnson and Prof Lyn Karstadt sign the MOU for Murdoch to become the first Australian university to deliver courses in Myanmar.
Murdoch will become the first Australian university to deliver courses in Myanmar following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with education partners Kaplan in Yangon.
Initially the University plans to offer Master of Business Administration and the Graduate Certificate of Business Administration from September in the brand new Kaplan Myanmar University College in Yangon, the largest city in Myanmar.
Deputy Vice Chancellor International Lyn Karstadt said it was part of Murdoch’s institutional DNA that education is accessible to all, and she was proud to be launching the courses in Myanmar.
“As an international university which is committed to strengthening our transnational education footprint, particularly in Asia, the opportunity to deliver our degree programs in partnership with Kaplan in Myanmar is incredibly exciting,” Professor Karstadt said.
“Young people in Myanmar are hungry for education and we know we can be a creative force for good there. This initiative supports the Australian Government’s aim to support the country’s reform process by improving the quality of education.”
With a population of 55 million, of which 44 per cent are under 25, Myanmar is currently undergoing rapid development and is a relatively untapped market for transnational education.
Since 2010, the country has implemented a range of democratic reforms attracting significant growth in foreign investment.
A number of UK universities offer courses in Myanmar including the Universities of Portsmouth and Northampton. The University of Oxford has a partnership with the University of Yangon to collaborate on higher education standards. In 2016, the University of Technology Sydney launched a research partnership with Yangon Technological University.
The Murdoch courses will be taught by approved Kaplan Singapore lecturers and delivered in English. The trimester study periods and fee levels will mirror those at Murdoch Singapore.
Murdoch Singapore Dean Associate Professor Peter Waring said there was scope for more Murdoch degree courses to be added over time.
“Kaplan believes interest in these programs will be especially strong from Burmese graduates of foreign universities looking to upgrade to postgraduate business qualifications. There are also a growing number of expatriates working in Yangon who may also be interested in pursuing postgraduate studies,” Professor Waring said.
“We’re expecting to see significant interest quite soon after launch.”
Kaplan Myanmar University College was officially launched in central Yangon on 28 June.