Cooperative Postgraduate Training

TAN Chorh ChuanPresident, National University of Singapore

Perspectives from National University of Singapore

• Joint or double degrees between universities

• University with research institute or industry

• Postgraduate student exchanges

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Spectrum of cooperative postgraduate training

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AustraliaM.Psych (Clinical) with Uni of Melbourne

MA (Southeast Asian Studies) with ANU

Joint PhD in Eng with ANU

Joint PhD in Physics with ANU

USABComp(Communications and Media) from NUS & Master of Entertainment Tech from CMU

LLB NUS & LLM NYU Law School

Doctor of Medicine between Duke-NUS Medical School and Duke Uni

IndiaJoint PhD in Eng / Science / Comp with IIT Madras

Joint PhD in Eng / Sci / Comp with IIT Bombay

NUS Concurrent and Joint Degree Programmes

UKMSc (Construction Law and Dispute Resolution) with King’s College London

GermanyMSc (Intelligent Transport Systems) with Technical Uni of Munich

MSc in Industrial Chemistry with Technical Uni of Munich

MSc in Industrial and Financial Mathematics with Technical Uni of Munich

SwitzerlandMSc in Infectious Diseases, Vaccinology and Drug Recovery (by research) with Uni of Basel

DenmarkJoint PhD NUS & Technical Uni of Denmark

NetherlandsJoint PhD in Eng with Eindhoven University of Technology,

FranceJoint PhD in Eng and Ecole Supérieure d'Electricité (Supelec),

SwedenJoint PhD in Molecular Medicine with KI

Note: These programmes are offered at Faculty-level

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USANUS-NYU: LLM in Law and the Global Economy, LLM

NUS LKYSPP-Columbia Uni: MPP, MPA

NUS School of Business and Risk Management Institute- Columbia Uni: Double Professional Degree in Financial Eng

UCLA-NUS Executive MBA

NUS Logistics Institute-Asia Pacific-Georgia Inst of Tech: MSc (Logistics and Supply Chain Management), MSc in Industrial Engineering

Singapore-MIT Alliance.

ChinaNUS Faculty of Arts-Peking Uni: MA in Chinese Language (by research)

NUS School of Business-Peking Uni: International MBA

NUS Faculty of Eng-Tsinghua Uni: MSc (Transportation Systems and Management), MSc

China & KoreaNUS School of Business-Fudan Uni-Korea Uni: Asia MBA

NUS Double Degree Programmes

FranceNUS LKYSPP-Sciences Po: MPP, MPA

NUS with six premier French Grandes Écoles. Comprises: Bachelor/Master of Engineering or Bachelor/Master of Science or Bachelor/Master of Computing from NUS and Diplôme d’Ingénieur from French Grande École (the equivalent of Masters in France)

NUS-Université Pierre Et Marie Curie-Paris Vi, France and Université Paris Sud–Paris Xi, France. Comprises:

BSc (Honours), Diplôme d’Etudes Approfondies, MSc

Bachelor of Applied Science (Honours), Diplôme d’Etudes Supérieures Specialisées);

UKNUS LKYSPP-LSE and Political Science: MPP, MPA,

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WHAT is the added academicvalue proposition?

WHY have joint- and double-degree postgraduate programmes?

• Nurture graduates who are well-equipped for a globalised world

• “Mutually beneficial academic outsourcing”Create exceptional educational programmes on complementary strengths in 2 universities

• Build unique graduate programmes around complementary research between universities

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“Global Education”

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NUS-Karolinska Institutet joint PhD in genetic and molecular epidemiology

#1: To exploit unique research complementarities

• NUS & KI faculty find exciting differences in epidemiology & biology of breast cancer between Singapore and Swedish cohorts

• Joint PhD students “bridge” joint projects in Singapore & Sweden using local data & materials

• With joint PhD students, research extended to comparative studies on imaging & genetics

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NUS-Karolinska Institutet joint PhD in genetic and molecular epidemiology

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• Coursework in 3 fulltime blocks: 2 x 6-week blocks in Singapore 1 x 6-week block in Stockholm

• Students spend at least 6 months in partner university working on joint projects

• 3 intakes – 18 students from Singapore 22 from KI

NUS-Karolinska Institutet joint PhD in genetic and molecular epidemiology

Added academic value proposition of joint PhD

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NUS-Karolinska Institutet joint PhD in genetic and molecular epidemiology

• Facilitates high-impact research

• Students get to work on unique set of data & materials from 2 countries

• Students obtain - cross-cultural immersion- tailored coursework from 2 universities

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NUS-Georgia Institute of Technology Dual MSc in logistics and supply chain management

#2: “Mutually beneficial academic outsourcing”

• Singapore is a major logistics hub

• NUS has broad expertise in SCM

• In 1998, plan to train excellent personnel to serve and anchor industry in Singapore

• Georgia Tech ranked #1 in Industrial Engineering in US, particular strengths in logistics

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NUS-Georgia Tech dual MSc in logistics and SCM

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• 6 months NUS – build breadth in understanding SCM

• 6 months GT – build depth in logistics operations

• 6 months NUS – research or internship

NUS-Georgia Tech dual MSc in logistics and SCM

• Capitalises on complementary educational strengths in 2 universities, rather than doing it yourself

• Distinctive, high-quality programme; Average intake 16/year

• Students obtain cross-cultural immersion, network

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NUS-Georgia Tech dual MSc in logistics and SCMAdded academic value proposition of dual MSc

• For 6 years, winner of Asian Freight & Supply Chain awards for Best Educational Course Provider

• Alumni salary survey – average USD100,000 pa

(at 8.5 years experience)

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NUS-Georgia Tech dual MSc in logistics and SCM

Added academic value proposition of dual MSc

Concurrent degree arrangementsNUS B Computing + Brown SM (Computational Bio)coordinated 5 year programme

Bachelor’s + MastersBachelor’s + PhD

#2: “Mutually beneficial academic outsourcing”

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Duke-NUS Graduate Medical Schooljoint NUS and Duke MD degree

#3: Attract high-quality students

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• 2 intakes – excellent student quality

• Useful differentiation as competition for best students intensifies

Duke-NUS Graduate Medical Schooljoint NUS and Duke MD degree

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• Easy to become unfocused – ideally should be driven by a specific strategy

• Sustainability beyond individual champions– needs both institutions’ strong commitment

• Takes a lot of faculty time for few students– estimate per joint degree > 200 person-hours

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Potential Pitfalls and Problems

• Strategic plan – identify key academic areas

• Ask “WHY a joint or double degree? – what is compelling academic value proposition”If proposal is from faculty, ask same question!

• Identify suitable partner university• Identify teams of champions in both universities• Secure in-principle support of Provosts

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Setting up a joint degree programme in NUS

• Joint academic committee works out educational programme, harmonises requirements and admin issues (template)

• Secure funding for scholarships & student travel

• Clear academic committees & Senates of both universitiesSome public universities, need to clear legislature

• Ready to go!! Don’t forget to monitor progress

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Setting up a joint degree programme

Key factors for higher chance of success• compelling academic/educational value

proposition for faculty, students and institutions• strong champions in both universities• additional resources • institutional (top management) commitment

Right institutional fit critical• It takes a long time to build relationships!

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What we have learnt:

2002/2003

2004/2005

2006/2007

1999/2000

2000/2001

2001/2002

2003/2004

2005/2006

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

1 graduate1 graduate

12 graduates

45 graduates

64graduates

74graduates

106graduates

119graduates

168graduates

2007/2008

Total nosDD/JD

programmes

Legend

Total DD / JD Programmes

DD / JD graduates

Legend

Total DD / JD Programmes

DD / JD graduates

Joint and double-degree postgraduate training can give exceptional academic value-add

• Exploit research complementarities • “Mutually beneficial academic outsourcing”• Attract high-quality students

Pitfalls to watch out for• Easy to become unfocused• Sustainability beyond individual champions• Takes up a lot of faculty time for few students

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Conclusion:

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Conclusion:

Bottom line – Important to keep asking:• Does it significantly improve quality?• Create unique value proposition?• Strongly differentiate institution?

For NUS, part of our vision of global education• Strategic plan for further development