Local and foreign students can study Australian university undergraduate degrees in fields as diverse as biomedical research, cyber security, design, and business for the first time in Sri Lanka at the new Edith Cowan University (ECU) campus in Colombo. Professor Steve Chapman, Vice-Chancellor of ECU, stated that the new campus reflects ECU's commitment to providing higher education opportunities in Sri Lanka and to providing creative routes for more students to acquire a world-class Australian degree in their home country. "We are happy to offer Sri Lankan students the option to pursue our degrees in critical development industries in a world-class learning environment," Vice-Chancellor Professor Steve Chapman.
"These globally recognized degrees will assist students in satisfying current and future skill needs, meet employment demand, and boost regional economic growth." Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena remarked during a visit to the ECU Sri Lanka campus that Sri Lanka has to provide more possibilities for local and foreign students, and that the government values such initiatives. The Prime Minister toured the campus with top executives from Edith Cowan University and Perth-based Navitas. The purpose-built, eight-story campus, which currently has 545 students registered, has learning and teaching facilities where students may get the skills, experience, and information they need to find work and establish successful careers anywhere in the globe. Among the highlights are new biomedical laboratories built to Australian standards that support a variety of disciplines such as anatomy, microbiology, genetics, physiology, and histopathology.
The campus also includes a one-of-a-kind digital hub for training in high-end digital marketing and game design. ECU has also announced the introduction of a new engineering degree program in 2024, which will provide engineering students with access to three major engineering laboratories including an electronic laboratory, an industrial control laboratory, and a power laboratory. According to Navitas CEO Scott Jones, Navitas, and ECU have been working together for more than 30 years to promote access to excellent higher education programs and exploit possibilities in the foreign and local markets. More than 10,000 students in Australia have advanced to study at ECU through Navitas route programs at Edith Cowan College.
"The inauguration of ECU Sri Lanka demonstrates the strength and sustainability of our cooperation, allowing world-class education to be given to more students in various places throughout the world," Jones added. "Most importantly, ECU Sri Lanka provides local students with the chance to study an Australian certification on a world-class university campus while still reaping the benefits of living and working in their native country." Professor Chapman expressed his excitement to be working with Navitas, which has a long and successful history of offering transnational education in collaboration with institutions all across the world.
