Stronger in partnership
CURTIN University, Malaysia (Curtin Malaysia) and Novakey Developers Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of the Episo Group of Companies, recently signed three memoranda to strengthen their academiaindustry partnership.
The documents included a memorandum of understanding for collaboration in education and training, and two memoranda of agreement for collaborative research.
Signing on behalf of Curtin Malaysia was pro-vice-chancellor, president and chief executive Prof Jim Mienczakowski while managing director Datuk David Goh Kien Ping signed for Novakey Developers.
Signing as witnesses were Curtin Malaysia’s Faculty of Engineering and Science dean Prof Lau Hieng Ho and Miri city councillor Ariffin Mohamad on behalf of Curtin Malaysia and Novakey Developers respectively.
In his speech during the signing ceremony, Prof Mienczakowski commented that the signing was a milestone for both organisations in their pursuit of producing graduates in construction technology and civil engineering as well as collaboration in cutting-edge research to meet market demands.
The collaboration will include Novakey Developers sponsoring an annual award of RM10,000 for the best project by final-year civil and construction engineering students.
Novakey Developers will also appoint a representative to the Faculty of Engineering and Science Industrial Advisory Committee who will work with the university to develop competitive engineering curricula and learning resources relevant to industry requirements.
In addition, the two organisations will develop industrial placement and graduate training programmes at Novakey Developers to groom talent for the civil and construction engineering sector in Sarawak.
According to Goh, this is a good move as there is a growing demand for engineers to support the state’s development agenda, especially mega infrastructure projects such as the Pan-Borneo Highway.
Under the research memoranda, Novakey Developers will provide some RM230,000 as well as materials to conduct research on high-performance concrete, which holds great potential in revolutionising the civil engineering industry.
Prof Lau said signing the memoranda with Novakey Developers was a significant step in enhancing the Faculty of Engineering and Science’s engagement with its industry partners.
The initiatives include establishment of the Curtin Highway Infrastructure Research and Innovation Hub earlier this year, which will work with the industry to carry out research as well as provide technical services and innovative solutions to support the ongoing development of the Pan-Borneo Highway.
The faculty received more than RM650,000 in research funding and RM1.08mil worth of donated equipment from the industry this year.
It also established a Keysight Reference Lab with Keysight Technologies and a Digital Maker Hub with the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation at the campus.
Additionally, a biotechnology research centre will soon be completed.
For more information, visit www.curtin.edu.my NO matter one’s financial status, scholarships are extremely helpful for students and are the most wellknown form of financial aid they can apply for.
However, funding postgraduate studies involves a lot more than fulfilling course fees every semester, and different types of scholarships are available for different needs.
The following are a few scholarship options for pursuing postgraduate studies.
Fellowship scheme
The four public research universities in Malaysia award financial assistantships to all local graduates to pursue postgraduate studies, particularly those pursuing doctorate degrees.
The usual requirements to qualify for a fellowship from research universities are include: Malaysian candidate Unemployed
Looking to pursue full-time study in a master’s or doctoral programme by research or coursework and dissertation
Possess a bachelor’s degree with minimum CGPA of 3.00 or its equivalent or a master’s degree (for doctorate degree)
Must not be older than 40 on application date
Research assistant scheme
Research supervisors, project leaders or project heads are the financial backing for this type of postgraduate funding.