News Archive

The scope of our University’s engagement and collaboration with other universities – both at home and abroad – has been highlighted again in recent weeks.

At one end of the spectrum is our very significant collaboration with Curtin University of Technology in language studies. As a result of this collaboration, Curtin University students wanting to study European and Asian languages not offered at their institution will be guaranteed a place in a UWA language course if they meet the course prerequisites.

We have a long-standing policy of encouraging students to take up languages other than English as part of their undergraduate studies. In fact, we offer bonus points on ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank) scores to inspire students to take up and maintain the study of languages.

And in our efforts to produce more rounded and multilingual citizens of the world, our New Courses 2012 will also encourage students to take up languages.

Our collaboration with Curtin University is one of the first serious attempts in this State to reverse the downward trend in numbers of students learning foreign languages.

Together, our two institutions will promote tertiary level study in Asian and European languages to ensure these language programs remain viable. We will also work together to garner government support for the continued teaching of languages in WA and, over time, we hope to expand the languages we teach.

At the other end of the spectrum is the three-nation forum hosted by our University last week. This forum brought together world-class researchers from UWA, China’s Zhejiang University and Japan’s Kobe University, along with more than 80 scientists and clinicians from around the world.

The event – the Third Australia-China-Japan Symposium – has an overarching aim to develop new health sciences and bioengineering initiatives, in particular for the ageing populations of our three nations. It has not been held in WA before.

This trilateral collaboration was based on our strength in medical research; China’s strengths in regenerative medicine and access to clinical trials; and Japan’s strength in bioengineering. In previous meetings, the group identified objectives with the potential to improve the lives of people around the world, concentrating on the fields of orthopaedics, rehabilitation and functional foods for good health.

Our ambition to be counted among the world’s top universities means we place great value on international alliances such as this. And, while our collaboration with Curtin University is a partnership much closer to home, it is also international in flavour – with the goal of providing more young West Australians with other languages to enable them to flourish and maintain meaningful relationships in the global village.

Both these exciting initiatives can only promote international wellbeing and ensure our University’s place as an institution which helps those who join with it to achieve international excellence.

Pictured: (from left) Professor Yang Wei from Zhejiang University (China), Vice-Chancellor Alan Robson, and Professor Hiroshi Ohta from Kobe University (Japan).

Vice-Chancellor Alan Robson

• From UWA News 3 May 2010