UNE could soon welcome a large number academics from the Bengkulu University in southwest Sumatra, Indonesia, to undertake PhD studies, as part of a plan to strengthen Indonesia’s higher education system.

For Indonesia’s Ministry for Research, Technology and Higher Education, it’s a priority to improve the international reputation and research outputs of its universities, and the government is looking to harness the existing partnership (MoU) with UNE to deliver on this agenda.

A small delegation from Bengkulu University met with UNE staff and senior executive in Armidale on Monday to discuss and define a number of opportunities to benefit both universities, beginning as early as 2019.

The delegation proposed a number of ideas, including having their academic staff with Master’s degrees upskill to doctorates at UNE, and to participate in new research collaboration and mentoring opportunities with UNE’s researchers.

UNE’s Dr Zifirdaus (Zi) Adnan, convenor of Indonesian Studies in the School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, escorted the delegation, and says he believes UNE is best placed to deliver on the country’s higher education agenda.

“I think UNE is very welcoming of all cultures and has great support structures to help international students settle and succeed. I have found that Armidale is a great place to study, and being Indonesian myself, I know we have the cultural support on campus to build a strong relationship with visitors from the university, and ensure they can fully benefit from their experience at UNE,” Dr Adnan said.

“The collaboration will also help build UNE’s international profile and pave the way for more Indonesian staff and students to partner with UNE in various ways,” he said.