“It’s been almost 20 years since the University of Nottingham opened its campus in Malaysia, becoming the first British university to establish an overseas campus anywhere in the world.

The University of Nottingham Malaysia delivers a world-class British education to around 5,000 students every year — and last year we were delighted to celebrate our 10,000th graduate. Our research focuses on Malaysia and the South East ASEAN region. Its impact has been well-received by publications and within the scientific community.

Our 10,000th graduate at our Malaysia campus

Like all universities, one of our important goals is to demonstrate that our global activities have a real and tangible benefit. As such, we are planning a number of activities in London and Nottingham in the run-up to the British Council’s annual Going Global Conference, to help celebrate the huge contribution made by our presence in Malaysia, and our connections to ASEAN.

What’s planned?

Our activities commence on Tuesday 24 April, when we will host several events in London to explore the role of education, research and people in building relations between the UK, Malaysia, and nations across the world. If you’re in the London on that day, particularly if you are an alumnus, get in touch with mvc-events@nottingham.ac.uk. It would be great to see you.

On Wednesday 25 April we host our first ever Nottingham and Malaysia Day, to celebrate our connections between Nottingham and Malaysia. A number of events will take place at University Park and Sutton Bonington aimed at staff, current students and alumni. To find out more, visit the Malaysia Week website.

From Wednesday 2 May – Friday 4 May, Malaysia will host the annual Going Global Conference, which brings together international education leaders from around the world to debate the future of further and higher education. The entire education sector in Malaysia has pulled together to arrange what looks to be a fantastic event, and the Ministry of Higher Education and British Council deserve special mentions for the effort and significant support that they have provided. The conference is truly a flagship event for Malaysia, which will further establish the country as an educational hub.

As well as these central events, there are a number of other events taking place — including a half day tour of our Malaysia campus on Wednesday 2 May, where up to 100 education leaders will be able to see examples of some of the groundbreaking research that is taking place.

Also coinciding with the Going Global Conference is the launch of Discover our world — a campaign to raise the profile of UNMC to our many audiences. The official launch will be on Thursday 3 May. A number of guests, colleagues, friends and speakers will be welcomed at the launch – highlights of which will include a Malaysian-themed experiment from Professor Sir Martyn Poliakoff as a live version of his Periodic Table of Videos series, which has attracted some 175 million hits on YouTube.

The evening event will feature inspirational short presentations from some of our leading researchers on topics including elephant conservation, mathematics and cancer research, and securing the future of our food.

Putting collar on elephant – image courtesy of http://www.meme-elephants.org/meme_home.html.

Such significant research carried out at UNMC has the potential to have a significant impact on the lives of many Malaysians and people around the world.

Looking at the agenda, it’s clear that we are in for a busy two weeks, both in the UK and in Malaysia — and I look forward to welcoming you to the many events, talks and activities that are taking place. Please join us in celebrating Malaysia!”

Professor Graham Kendall

Provost and CEO of The University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus (UNMC).