An eminent Australian academic and internationally renowned scholar of Indonesian media and culture has been appointed to lead The University of Western Australia's Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.  

Professor Krishna Sen is currently Executive Director, Humanities and Creative Arts at the Australian Research Council (ARC).

UWA Acting Vice-Chancellor Professor Margaret Seares said the University was pleased to attract a new Dean with an outstanding record in research and teaching.  She said the appointment would continue to build on the Faculty's reputation of international excellence.

"Professor Sen's background and international recognition will build on the University's strengths and increase our profile in the international community," Professor Seares said.

Professor Sen has been a member of the ARC's Asia Pacific Futures network and Cultural Research networks, a longstanding assessor for the ARC and a member of the ARC College of Experts.   

Prior to joining the ARC, Professor Sen was Dean, Research, Creative Production and Graduate Studies in the Division of Humanities at Curtin University of Technology and still holds a Personal Chair as Professor of Asian Media.

She was a founding member of Murdoch University's Asia Research Centre and continues to serve on its international advisory board.

As a Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities, with a Ph.D in Politics, M.A in International Relations and B.A History Honours, Professor Sen is internationally recognised as one of the most significant scholars of Indonesian media and culture.  She will bring to the position an outstanding record in research and teaching in Asian Studies, communication studies and gender studies, and a deep commitment to inter-disciplinarity, internationalisation and collaborative research.

Professor Sen will take up the appointment in mid January 2009.

Media references

Professor Margaret Seares   (+61 8)  6488 2802
Janine MacDonald (UWA Public Affairs)  (+61 8)  6488 5563  /  (+61 4) 32 637 716