Tsukuba University's Malaysia Branch Campus
As a master's degree graduate myself, I am quite interested in what kind of research is being conducted at Japanese universities and how the academic community is evolving.
Recently, I even recorded a program featuring Mari Sekine, who infiltrated the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST), known for the university gathering geniuses from around the world.
Amongst all this, one news that caught my attention is the establishment of a Tsukuba University overseas branch campus in Malaysia.
Tsukuba University already has an office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
It appears to be located within Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology (MJIIT), which is within Malaysia University of Technology, similar to Japan-Vietnam University in Vietnam (or at least that's my understanding).
Why is Tsukuba University Establishing a Branch Campus in Malaysia?
According to the source, it all started with the request made by former Prime Minister Mahathir, known for his Look East Policy, when he received an honorary doctorate from Tsukuba University.
Certainly, it's worth noting that Tsukuba University already has an office in Malaysia and is a national university.
While you can find branch campuses of foreign universities in Japan, like those of Chinese universities in Ikebukuro, this seems to be the first time a Japanese university is officially establishing a branch campus overseas.
Speaking of Malaysia, it is known that there are overseas branch campuses of universities such as Monash University and Xiamen University. Personally, I was even searching for Chinese language courses at Xiamen University's Malaysia branch campus. When I mentioned my study abroad plans to a student from the main campus of Xiamen University, they told me, "We have a branch campus in Malaysia!" It seems to be a popular choice among students from the main campus as well.
But There's No Information About the Malaysia Branch Campus!
The Tsukuba University Malaysia Overseas Branch Campus is scheduled to open in September 2024.
This means that the preparation period for the campus might coincide with my study abroad experience, which has me wondering.
I happened to learn about the establishment when I was browsing the website of the Embassy of Japan in Malaysia during a period when I was changing my family name due to marriage and going through the procedures for a student visa. Since then, I have been searching for information for a few months now.
However, I haven't been able to find much detailed information, which surprises me.
Granted, it's been over a year, but I still wish I could learn more about it.
I'm curious about the size of the overseas branch campus and the subjects that will be offered. If they have a Japanese literature department, I have the ability to be a teaching assistant (TA) or a learning assistant (LA), so it would be great to have some academic exchange in the research field.
I hope that when I go to Malaysia, I can hear from local media and university students.
So, I'm eagerly seeking any information or updates regarding this matter.
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