(Professor Chris Rudd OBE, Deputy Vice Chancellor and Head of Campus, Singapore at James Cook University, in a networking session with partners)

The Singapore campus of James Cook University (JCU) held the 11th edition of its Annual Partners Conference on 10-12 January 2020, which brought together well over a hundred of its top partners from around the globe for updates on the university’s progress.

Professor Chris Rudd OBE, Deputy Vice Chancellor and Head of Campus, Singapore at James Cook University, said of the conference in his welcome remarks, “It’s an opportunity for us to communicate our ideas to you, and to share our development. But also, of course, it’s an opportunity for you to experience our study environments, our student facilities, and to feedback to us about the market conditions you all are facing, or advice you’ve got for us about program development, or indeed the way we present ourselves."

Having joined the university early last year in 2019, this year marked Professor Rudd’s first Annual Partners Conference at James Cook University in Singapore.

He added, “I hope, also, that it’s a good opportunity for you all to network amongst the group and feed off one another’s ideas, and it’s a very innovative, creative environment that I hope we will be immersed in for the next three days.”

Maintaining a diverse range of partners is important to the Singapore campus of James Cook University, as the campus works with numerous overseas education representatives and partners from all over the world, to guide prospective students towards pursuing higher education at James Cook University in Singapore.

In fact, Professor Rudd noted that, in 2019 the Singapore campus of James Cook University “finished the year with the biggest recruitment [of students] ever” and that the campus is committed to maintaining that growth.

(Students sharing their heartfelt experiences at the Singapore campus of James Cook University in a panel discussion, with Ms Pinky Sibal (far left),  
Senior Manager, Branding atJames Cook University in Singapore, moderating)

In various sharing sessions across the 3-day conference, the partners were treated to news of many exciting developments in the Singapore campus of James Cook University — whether it was new opportunities, new facilities, or more.

(Mr Andrew Chew, Director of Marketing at James Cook University in Singapore, speaking at the 11th Annual Partners Conference)

In the opening presentation, Mr Andrew Chew, Director of Marketing at James Cook University in Singapore, spoke on Partnering with the University. Mr Chew said, “We will be working closely with each of our partners and roll out marketing initiatives to support partners to further grow the student population.”

In addition to the Student Recruitment and Branding departments, he also highlighted the creation of three new departments of External Relations, Continuing Education, and Research and Enterprise under the Marketing Division. The intent of establishing these new portfolios is to further enhance the profile of the Singapore campus in domestic and international markets.

Mr Chew also informed partners, “This is a very special year indeed as James Cook University is celebrating its 50th anniversary, and we can look forward to significant activities in our Australia and Singapore campuses to mark this important occasion.” Other updates included the rebranded Learning Centre, a sharing panel discussion from a handful of remarkable students, and the revamped Student Affairs department .

(Professor Chris Rudd OBE at the Gala Dinner on Day Two of the 11th Annual Partners Conference)

At the end of the second day of the conference, a gala dinner was held to the theme of “Futuristic”, where the university recognised the hard work of the esteemed partners. During this dinner, awards were presented to the top partners. This year’s award winners included:

Best New Partner:

• Global Education Alliance Limited
• New Ocean Investment Joint Stock Company
• I – Net Systems Company Limited
• Institution Kazakh-British Study Centre M&K

Best Partnership:

• Tianjin Adelaide Education Consultation Service Co., Ltd
• Knowledge Matrix Consulting Pte Ltd
• Vietnam Eduzone Company Limited
• Myanmar Search International Services Co., Ltd
• PT Infor Cemerlang Andal Nusa(ICAN)
• GOstralia International Education Consultancy
• Singjunmo
• JJL International Education Exchange Promotion Ltd

Best Performing Partner:

• Destiny Consultant Pte Ltd
• Education International Cooperation (EIC) Group Limited
• Dalian Huanxing Huize Overseas Study Services Co., Ltd
• International Network Education Consultants Co., Ltd
• Crown Consulting Limited
• Anhui Huanwai Overseas Studying Service Co., LTD
• College of International Studies, Sichuan University, Sino-Singapore Program
• The Chopras Global Holdings Pvt Ltd

Partner of the Year:

• Beijing New Oriental Vision Overseas Consulting Co., Ltd

When looking ahead to the future, Professor Rudd commented on the state of the world, “When we look around the world and see all the global uncertainty, with situations in the US, in the UK, we see natural disasters taking place around us, social upheaval in parts of Asia, and I can’t ever remember a time where global uncertainty has been greater. But you know, here we are in Singapore. We’re here in a very stable environment, but also surrounded by growth opportunities.”

“We’re surrounded by countries that are still urbanising. And so, we’re really confident about the potential for continued growth, whilst maintaining quality here in JCU Singapore.”

He added, “But I think at the same time, we should reflect on the fact that there are very large communities out there even now who are suffering because of these political turmoils, natural disasters and so on, and many lives within our tropical constituencies that are suffering as a result of those.”

“JCU will continue to be committed to creating a better life for those communities. And that means continuing to grow our education programs, our research programs, so that tropical societies are better equipped to deal with change, to deal with emergencies and the situations that make them vulnerable.”

“That might be about sustainable access to clean water, to sustainable food supplies — for example our aquaculture programs — it might be through smarter city planning, so that the cities in Asia tomorrow can be less vulnerable, more sustainable; and also educating the next generation of policy makers who are responsible for enacting those changes.”

Check out more photos from the 11th Annual Partners Conference — Day One, Day Two, Day Three.

Find out more about our Overseas Education Representatives around the globe here.

Contacts

Media: Pinky Sibal [email protected]