Twelve months on, the Murdoch community came together to celebrate at an inaugural event. Gathering at the Meliá Yangon hotel, Murdoch University alumni from Singapore and Malaysia, University representatives and the first group of MBA students came together to acknowledge the success of the last 12 months and discuss new opportunities for students in the region.

Deputy Vice Chancellor Professor Lyn Karstadt and Pro Vice Chancellor, Transnational Education, Professor Peter Waring delivered stirring speeches to reflect the dawn of a new era for Murdoch in South East Asia.

Professor Waring commented that “Murdoch’s Mission is to be a creative force for good in the world and the offer of our courses in Yangon is a concrete example of how we can help to transform the lives of others for the better. We have been delighted by the encouragement and support we have received from the Australian Government in Myanmar, and we look forward to an expansion of our activities there in the years to come.”

In a speech following the event, Vice Chancellor Professor Eeva Leinonen said Murdoch’s presence in Myanmar was further evidence of the University’s continued international standard of excellence.

“Our global standing as a university has been further cemented by the official opening of Murdoch Myanmar, our education partnership with Kaplan in the capital city, Yangon,” she said.

“We held a very special, inaugural event and I am confident Myanmar will become a key hub of the Murdoch global footprint. With a population of 55 million, of which 44 per cent are under 25, Myanmar is currently undergoing rapid development and we believe that sharing the power of education with this developing nation will be important to its transformation and democratisation.”

The first group of MBA students are set to graduate in the second half of 2020 and will attend graduation ceremonies in Perth.