Minister Nadiem Makarim Inaugurates Monash University in BSD City

JAKARTADAILLY.ID – As Indonesia welcomes its first foreign university in the country, Sinar Mas Land through BSD City opens its gates to host Monash University, bridging Indonesian education to the international sphere. 

Minister for Education, Culture, Research, and Technology, Nadiem Makarim conveyed that President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo wanted to explore collaborations with global institutions to uncover potential within research and partnerships. 

“I would like to thank Ambassador Penny Williams for the support from the Australian government, Prof. Margaret Gardner for the support from Monash, and Michael Widjaja who paved the way for foreign universities to come here,” said Nadiem during his opening remarks at the inauguration event on Thursday, April 14, 2022.

“Monash's existence as the first foreign university is a bridge between (the Indonesian) education (system) and the international community. Therefore, together we can advance on (to) the world stage," added Nadiem.

President and Vice-Chancellor for Monash University, Prof. Margaret Gardner said that the opportunity to gain new knowledge was the vision of Monash University and the Indonesian government.

“We hope that Monash can learn from and contribute significantly to economic development in the region. We chose this location by considering its proximity to industry, to other universities, and to where people live, study and work,” she said.

"Monash University Indonesia has an attractive home in BSD City with a good ecosystem so that we can collaborate with innovative companies such as Traveloka, Unilever, and others," said Prof. Andrew MacIntrye President of Monash University Indonesia.

Group CEO for Sinar Mas Land, Michael Widjaja said that it is the company’s honor to host Monash University and to support the government's efforts to improve the quality of education and the country’s workforce.

“We hope that Monash's presence can open up opportunities for Indonesians to receive education at one of the world's best institutions in the country. With a location in BSD City, Monash is directly connected to various industries based in this area so that the knowledge received can be immediately applied in real terms to support Indonesia's progress," said Michael.

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At the BSD City Campus, Monash will focus on Master's level education (S2) in the fields of Data Science, Urban Design, Business Innovation, and Public Policy & Management.

Monash University through the Monash University Indonesia Foundation will also be collaborating with local universities through several partnership programs.

Monash's presence completes the educational ecosystem in BSD City which has hosted a number of well-known educational institutions such as Atma Jaya University, Prasetiya Mulya University, IULI, and global institutions such as Apple Developer Academy from Apple Inc.

In the future, Monash University graduates are expected to be able to fill human resource needs in companies with offices in the BSD City Central Business District, such as Unilever, Traveloka, NTT, and MyRepublic, among others.