A lineage of quality

By ProF DAviD MCClEAn robert Gordon University

THE Scott Sutherland School of Architecture & Built Environment and the Robert Gordon University ( RGU) have a long- standing relationship with Malaysia that extends back over 40 years. In that time, many Malaysian students have studied at the UK university in the subjects of Architecture and Quantity Surveying and have maintained a fondness for their experience there.

Indeed, the Malaysian alumni community is among the largest in the university and includes many who have studied at the Scott Sutherland School. It is therefore with pleasure that I will be visiting Malaysia again in early March.

As head of the Scott Sutherland School since 2006, I am proud of the achievements of our students, especially those who make the commitment to come to Scotland from so far away to study, experience and expand their horizons. Scotland is celebrated around the world for the quality of its university education and RGU stands tall among its peer group having been recognised as the No. 1 UK university for graduate employment for several consecutive years.

This is a record that has not come by accident, but through RGU’s focus on quality education, strong industry links and applied research that translates new knowledge to a professional or industrial context. This is vital to the ethos of the Robert Gordon University and to the spirit of the Scott Sutherland School.

Accordingly, RGU has one of the highest percentages of accredited courses of any UK university. It has the third oldest accredited Architecture course in the UK, with a history of well over 100 years, and one of the longest accredited courses in Quantity Surveying.

As an architect myself, I have always been interested in the phenomenon of the city and in experiencing the diversity in their form through travel.

KL is itself fascinating, particularly for someone more used to the European city model. More of us live in cities than in rural areas, with the result that they serve as crucibles for the generation of social, cultural and economic opportunity.

For young people today, cities are more important than ever before and understanding how we reconcile urban expansion and population growth with scarce resources, and with a desire to