Singapore's fourth university to be located in
Changi
By Satish Cheney & Margaret Perry, Channel NewsAsia | Posted:
11 August 2008 1840 hrs
SINGAPORE: Singapore's fourth public-funded university will open
its doors in 2011, offering programmes in Engineering and
Applied Science, Business and Information Technology, and
Architecture and Design.
The disciplinary areas chosen for the new university's initial
offerings will serve Singapore's economy and manpower needs over
the medium term.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) has appointed Philip Ng Chee
Tat, CEO of property developer Far East Organisation, as chairman
of the steering committee to oversee the establishment of the new
university.
The committee will comprise leaders from the academia, industry
and public sector.
One of the committee's main tasks is to develop a masterplan for
the development of the new university's permanent campus and to
locate a temporary campus in the interim.
When the interim campus opens in 2011, it will take in just 500
students. This will gradually be expanded over time until there is
an annual intake of 2,500 students.
The committee will also appoint the board of trustees and
management team for the institution, which includes an
international search for the president of the new university.
It will guide the development of the new university's programmes
as well, and identify suitable and reputable overseas universities
to form partnerships and collaborations.
The new university's campus will be located along
Upper Changi Road East, next to the Changi Business Park, which is
home to high technology businesses and knowledge-intensive
facilities of leading companies such as
IBM.
MOE said the location will offer the new university
opportunities to develop a vibrant, industry-academia ecosystem
around the campus, with possible link-ups with companies
nearby.
Senior Minister of State for Education, Lui Tuck Yew, said: "I
think that will give opportunities for industry to be in the campus
and for students to be in the industry as well."
The new campus will be built by 2015 on the plot of land
that was previously set aside for the University of New South
Wales' (UNSW) Singapore campus. It was chosen because it is large
enough to house faculties and hostels.
The site, approximately 22.6 hectares, is also easily
accessible - as the Expo MRT station is 600 metres away and
expressways run nearby.
No budget has been set for the new campus, but it is expected to
cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
On the design of the campus, Education Minister Ng Eng Hen said:
"I would encourage them to find something that's distinctively
Singaporean, which will give students the feeling, 'Oh, I'm going
to
enjoy my four years here because this is a place I'd like to
study'."
MOE is conducting a public consultation on the naming of
the new university and members of the public can submit their ideas
online at www.moe.gov.sg/name-the-uni.
