Sir Anthony Seldon visitis Sri Lanka
Sir Anthony Seldon, the biographer of four British Prime Ministers, had a “brilliant” time visiting University of Buckingham alumni in Sri Lanka as part of a tour of the Far East.
The Vice-Chancellor of Buckingham also visited Colombo Business School, where he was “inspired” by the work there and “greatly enjoyed” meeting staff.
The two-day trip, which took place at the end of last month (May), was part of a tour including Singapore, Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur.
Sir Anthony met alumni at drinks and a dinner in Colombo. He updated them on all the latest developments at the University as well celebrating the University’s 40th anniversary with them. Buckingham has just announced that it is launching the Buckingham Institute of School Leadership, which is to train the country’s top teachers to become first class headteachers. The project has the British Government’s backing. The University was this year named The Times and Sunday Times’ University of the Year for Teaching Quality.
The University has also announced that it is setting up a new Centre for Liberal Economics, thanks to a £5m donation from Lord Vinson, former Chairman of Trustees at the Institute of Economic Affairs. (IEA). The new centre will undertake IEA research as well as offering a space for lectures and meetings for lecturers, Visiting Lecturers and students. The building will form the centrepiece of the campus.
Sir Anthony also talked about the history of the university and how it has always promoted free thinking. The University has unveiled a £150m fund-raising campaign during its 40th year to continue to build on its success as an independent university for years to come.
He talked about the inaugural University of Buckingham Higher Education Festival, which takes place on September 8th and 9th. Britain’s Universities and Science Minister, Jo Johnson, is the keynote speaker at the festival, which includes more than 30 top speakers from the world of higher education on the theme of the future of higher education. Staff working in higher education, school teachers and students from around the world, including Sri Lanka, are welcome at the event.
As well as giving a speech, Sir Anthony spent time talking to alumni to find out about their time at Buckingham and what they had gone on to do. They spoke about how they had successful careers after studying at Buckingham and how their studies had been a great launchpad for the world of work.
Sir Anthony said that he “very much enjoyed” his trip to Sir Lanka. He was “delighted” to meet the alumni who spoke “warmly” of their time studying at Buckingham, and how much fun it had been as well as set- ting them up for life. After meeting the alumni Sir Anthony said: “I hope there will be many more students from Sri Lanka at Buckingham in the future as they are both hard-working and lovely students.” He also praised the country saying that it was good to see the economy growing stronger.
The trip was part of the University of Buckingham’s 40th anniversary celebrations. Sir Anthony is visiting alumni around the world including trips to the US, Middle East, Canada and Europe to mark the milestone.
Buckingham was set up on the ethos of free-thinking and has blazed a trail throughout its pioneering history. When it opened its doors, in 1976, it was the first HE institution to offer two-year degrees. Last year Buckingham became the first university in the country to set up an independent medical school.
It is ranked top for graduate employability, according to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) and also leads the way for student satisfaction (National Student Survey). The English Department is ranked 9th by The Guardian University Guide and Buckingham also has the safest campus in England.
The University of Buckingham offers a range of subjects to study at degree level and beyond. Degrees are offered in English, Psychology, Economics, History, History of Art, Politics, Applied Computing, Business, Marketing, Accountancy, Law, Journalism, French and Spanish.
There are also postgraduate courses in education, business, the History of Art Collecting, Diplomacy, Intelligence, Lean studies and the other core undergraduate subjects. The University also carries out pioneering research into diabetes and has a range of short business and marketing courses. For more information go to www.buckingham.ac.uk
The trip was part of the University of Buckingham’s 40th anniversary celebrations. Sir Anthony is visiting alumni around the world including trips to the US, Middle East, Canada and Europe to mark the milestone.