Swinburne delegation tours India
Date posted: Monday 23 Aug 2010
A delegation of top academics and senior management from Swinburne University of Technology has embarked on a 5-day tour of India to discuss future collaborations with a number of key Indian institutions.
Beginning in Chennai, the delegation will also visit Hyderabad and New Delhi from 23 – 27 August.
During the visit, Swinburne will be signing MoUs with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU).
Heading up the delegation is Pro Vice-Chancellor (International) Mr Jeffrey Smart, who said Swinburne is the second Australian university to partner with IIT.
“The MoU with IIT will enable future collaborations in the biotechnology field including research, sponsorship of cooperative seminars and exchange of academic information, students and staff,” he said.
The agreement between JNTU and Swinburne will pave the way for future research collaborations and staff exchange.
The other delegates include International Partnerships Associate Director Tanya Loh, Faculty of Engineering and Industrial Sciences Associate Dean Professor Ajay Kapoor, Faculty of Higher Education, Lilydale Associate Dean (Research) Bruce Calway, Swinburne International and National Recruitment Regional Team Leader Pankaj Arora and Swinburne’s representative in India Bala Ramalingam.
Mr Smart said the visit follows on from Swinburne’s excellent ratings in the Shanghai Jiao Tong world university rankings and the 2011 Good Universities Guide.
The smallest Australian university to be included in the Shanghai Jiao Tong rankings, Swinburne retained its placing in the world’s top 500 universities for the second year in a row.
Additionally, the Good Universities Guide rated Swinburne the best university in Victoria for graduate satisfaction, continuing a successful track record of being best in Melbourne in 2007, 2008 and 2010.
With over 1600 Indian students currently studying at Swinburne, the university has introduced a number of services to support Indian students in their studies and life outside university. A $30 million student services hub is currently under construction at the Hawthorn campus, which will house a student lounge, clubs, a multi-faith centre and a range of other services.