World Class University Project: Sri Jayewardenepura University aims high with goal of achieving global rank by 2025
View(s):In line with the Higher Education Ministry’s World Class University Project, the Sri Jayewardenepura University has set the goal of becoming a ranked global educational institute by 2025.
According to the university’s (Acting) Vice Chancellor Sudantha Liyanage many steps have been taken so far to achieve the target.
According to the Vice Chancellor, one such step was the signing of MOUs with various important partners. As of this year, around 60 such MOUs had been signed internationally and locally. Around four more local and international MOUs were to be signed by December 2020.
Other initiatives were also taken by the university. This includes the setting up of the university’s business incubator, research council, instrument centre and brain bank.
Prof. Liyanage said the business incubator was created in late 2019, with the aim of linking the business sector with university research. This allowed for business sector professionals and students alike to understand our society’s needs, so these needs could be looked into.
He also said the research council was set up to maintain 25 nationally important research centres in the country. One of these centres, the Centre for Dengue Research, which had partnered with the University of Oxford, had conducted over 10,000 PCR tests to find a cure for COVID-19.
The centre’s director Prof. Malavige had been recognised internationally for dengue research and her work in combating COVID-19.
The instrument centre was created in 2012, and it had more than ten state of the art analytical instruments catering to the needs of more than 125 undergraduate and graduate students each year. It was also used by researchers inside and outside the university, Prof. Liyanage said.
The Vice Chancellor also said the COIVD-19 pandemic had severely disrupted the university’s dealings with the international market.
Prof. Liyanage said the university was also interested in attracting external and postgraduate students from foreign countries. He said they were currently conducting a drive to attract foreign students, and they would look at these students’ academic and extra-curricular activities and income as admission criteria.
He said the university hoped to provide a wholesome education that emphasised the students’ character and leadership development, which would help them compete in the job market.
“The focus of teaching right now will be distance learning, but there have also been ideas of offering split site degree programmes and student exchange programmes, in the future,” the Vice Chancellor said.
He said the university wanted to be recognised as a dynamic institution that would continue to serve our country, while paying homage to its long history. -PW