Monash University is plannning to expand offshore with an agreement to establish a full branch campus at Sunway College in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The globalisation of higher education has taken a significant step forward with the establishment of a seventh campus for Monash University -- its first outside of Australia -- to cater for the growing demand for university education in the Asia-Pacific region.

Monash has accepted an invitation from the Malaysian Government to take up a licence to establish a full branch campus in Kuala Lumpur in partnership with Sunway College. Monash is the first foreign university to be asked to operate a full campus in Malaysia.

The shift to globalisation is being strongly advocated by the vice-chancellor of Monash University, Professor David Robinson: "At Monash we are beginning to see ourselves as not only an integral part of Australia's higher education system but also as part of the higher education systems of other countries as well."

Professor Robinson said the Monash University Sunway Campus Malaysia was a key part of the Monash Plan, which aimed to establish a range of campuses and extension centres throughout the Asia-Pacific and in selected countries beyond that region.

The campus will be a part of the Malaysian University System but it will be a unique Malaysian institution, enabling Malaysian students to study at home and still gain a qualification from a prestigious Australian university.

About 650 students will begin their studies at the campus in July this year. The campus will offer undergraduate and postgraduate courses in engineering, science, information technology, business and the arts.

A stronger presence

The partnership with Sunway College builds upon the twinning arrangements that currently exist between the two institutions, whereby students complete the final year of their studies at Monash in Australia. The new arrangement means that Malaysian students can complete their entire Monash degree in Malaysia.

"Monash is gradually becoming not merely an Australian university with international connections but a truly global institution," Professor Robinson said. "We are seeking to expand the scope of our activities where we already have a strong presence, such as in the Menzies Centre at the University of London, the Australian Studies Centre at the University of Potsdam in Germany, and the Australia-New Zealand Studies Centre at Georgetown University in Washington.

"International students will still come to Monash in Australia for their university education, but the Sunway campus will enable Malaysian students and other students from the region to obtain a Monash qualification while studying in Malaysia.

"Australian students will also benefit from the Sunway campus. As part of Monash's commitment to a global education experience for all its students, up to 750 students each year will be awarded scholarships to spend a semester studying in another country. Our Malaysian campus will contribute to this program."

Since the 1970s, Monash has accepted large numbers of Malaysian students onto its campuses and now has the largest number of Malaysian alumni of any foreign institution -- almost 9000.

"No other university in Australia has made such a strong commitment to the globalisation of education," Professor Robinson said. "All Monash students, whether they be Australian or not, studying in Australia or offshore, benefit from a university that maintains a global perspective. We believe it is our duty to produce citizens of the world, not just citizens of Australia."