BINUS Encourages International Partnership

February 16 , 2012

Dozens of Taiwanese with black suits gather at BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL, The Joseph Wibowo Center Campus, Senayan, Central Jakarta. They enthusiastically tour in the building which was named after the founder of BINA NUSANTARA foundation.

Their activity is part of the immersion trip of Yuan Ze University to BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL. After the campus tour, students of MM Executive also acquaint themselves with students of BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL. Lecturers from BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL teach them about Design Thinking.

Yes, these students enthusiastically listen to materials given by Program Director MM Executive, Tubagus Hanafi Soeriaatmadja, MBA, MSi and Student & Alumnae Relation Manager, Muhammad Ariono Margiono, S.IP, MSC (ECON), MM. They are then asked to share their ideas.

According to Overseas Program Coordinator BINUS INTERNATIONAL & BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL, Rokoyah Andariani Amin, students of Yuan Zee are satisfied with BINUS’ reception. “They are also excited to see students from MM Executive,” says the woman known as Yaya to the editorial team on Thursday (16/2).

The immersion trip is a part of the collaboration program between BINUS INTERNATIONAL, BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL and other universities. With the cooperation, BINUS prioritizes  foreign universities with good reputations. As well as immersion trips, there are joint researches, guest lecturers and of course student exchange programs.

THE BENEFIT OF INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIP

“With our partners, we have the twinning program. This means, students can obtain degrees from both BINUS and our partners. We will give students the chance to study in Indonesia for two years and they can spend the next year studying abroad. They can also learn here for three years and still acquire two degrees,” Yaya explains when we interview her at JWC Campus.

Yaya says there are a lot of benefits gained by BINUS INTERNATIONAL and BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL from this collaboration. The twinning program is one of them. However, there are larger advantages gained in this partnership, from academic and non-academic points of view.

“For instance, students will get extra degrees from the twinning program. Moreover, our students will be able to get international experiences and they will learn to be more independent when they study abroad. We can also learn a lot of things from our partners,” Yaya says.

BINUS students can perform internships at other universities abroad and therefore, they have a better chance of being recruited by companies outside of Indonesia. They can also easily find jobs in Indonesian companies.

“At the moment, most Indonesian companies still prioritize graduates from foreign universities. They have their own reasons. They are looking for human resources who speak English fluently, and are independent and adaptive. We are preparing our students for these qualifications, because when they are abroad, they see different people from different countries,” Yaya explains.

This partnership is based on the concept of symbiotic mutualism.  Both partners  benefit. “This cooperation also introduces diversity within the students’ community in their university. This creates a very good situation for their students,” Yaya says.

PARTNERS OF BINUS INTERNATIONAL AND BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL

Dean of Programs Minaldi Loeis, M.Sc, MM, says that BINUS INTERNATIONAL doesn’t choose its partners based on the universities. “We choose the right partners based on their programs. So, we will cooperate with universities which provide qualified programs for our students,” says the man often called Pak Mil.

At BINUS INTERNATIONAL Day 2012, Minaldi explains in detail about BINUS INTERNATIONAL partners. There are more or less 20 academic partners, such as Curtin Business School, Macquarie University, Cologne Business School (CBS), University of Wollongong, Northumbria University and La Trobe University.

“Take Northumbria University, for instance. Northumbria is in the top 10 of best design schools in the world. Their alumni are recommended. Located in Newcastle, England, Northumbria has a very strong tradition in the area of design. We are very proud to be able to work with them,” Pak Mil explains.

BINUS INTERNATIONAL and BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL always try to choose their partners wisely. “As institutions, we want to be able to learn from each other – especially if we see them as good institutions. Usually they come to BINUS and afterwards we talk with them. If we see eye to eye, we will work as partners and sign an agreement,” Yaya says.

Yaya explains that most of BINUS’ partners originated from Australia. There is a reason for this. Students’ parents often consider their children’s psychological factor. Geographically, Australia is not far from Indonesia. That means it is easy for the parents to visit their children.

“One thing is for sure – we want to find universities with good reputations and good quality – because in the future we will place our students there. Of course, we want to do our best for them (BINUS students).”

WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT BINUS

There are a lot of opinions from Partners of BINUS INTERNATIONAL and BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL. All of them provide positive reviews. One of them is the opinion given by La Trobe University.

“Students of BINUS INTERNATIONAL have very good attitudes. We even have a high-achieving student who managed to attain a full scholarship from La Trobe,” says Ina Liem, In-Country Manager La Trobe University for Indonesia when we interviewed her at BINUS INTERNATIONAL Day 2012.

A similar opinion is given by a representative from Curtin Business School. “They are not only providing a good education system, but also an impressive, efficient and comprehensive administration,” says Prof. Werner Soontiens, Dean International Curtin Business School.

Based on the data from Curtin Business School, Prof. Werner Soontiens says BINUS students are well prepared to gain success in their study at Curtin. The alumni, says Werner, have proven their success in the professional business world.

“We are fully confident of choosing BINUS INTERNATIONAL as our partner to provide a qualified teaching system and administrative process at a higher education level. We are looking at a very good future together,” Werner says.

THE HOPE FOR INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIP

BINUS INTERNATIONAL and BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL welcomes the internationalization year in 2012. Referring to this purpose, BINUS wants its students to obtain international experience. That’s why BINUS cooperates with other universities abroad.

“Because our focus is internationalization, we want to enhance international experiences for students of BINUS INTERNATIONAL and BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL. At the moment, there are 18 foreign exchange students who are studying in our university. We want our students to participate in a similar program,” Yaya says.

Yaya hopes that their partnership with reputable universities will continue smoothly. “Hopefully our cooperation can provide extra advantages for universities and students. We want to create more than just student mobility and staff mobility, and we want to organize joint seminars and other similar programs,” Yaya says. (RA)