BY LORETTA B MANELE
Students deserve education that is globally relevant and excellent.
Solomon Islands National University (SINU) Vice Chancellor, Dr Transform Aqorau raised this earlier this month when he delivered the “New Academic Year Opening Address” at Panatina Campus.
He said they must raise the quality of education to meet global standards, pointing out that as we live in a connected world SINU graduates will not only be competing against each other but with graduates from Fiji, Australia and Asia.
“They deserve education that is globally relevant and excellent. That is why one of my top priorities has been academic reform and accreditation,” said Aqorau.
He said he is proud to say that SINU is on the verge of becoming an officially accredited, regulated university under our national framework.
Aqorau said with support from partners, they have reviewed and organised all their academic policies to align with international best practices.
He said they have begun a comprehensive review of all programmes to ensure that SINU qualification truly prepares students for success.
“Our ultimate goal is to become a self-accredited, accredited university in the future,” said Aqorau.
He highlighted that they are empowered to accredit their own programmes because they have proven their quality.
The Vice Chancellor said achieving such a status would be a landmark for an institution like SINU, signalling that our national university meets rigorous standards comparable to universities anywhere in the world.
He however said that accreditation is not about favour or prestige but rather, about accountability to their students in the sense of ensuring that when they hand someone a degree, it actually means that they have the skills and knowledge to excel.
“It is about making someone out of this competitive on the regional and global stage, so that a degree from SINU is held in high esteem throughout the Pacific and beyond,” he said.
Aqorau said this is how we keep our talented youths at home while also attracting international opportunity.
Moreover, he said quality education also means better education.
With this he put out the question.
“Are we teaching the subjects and skills that our country truly needs?”
Aqorau said in the past three years, they have taken steps to realign their programmes with national needs.
Giving one example, he said they have strengthened technical and vocational training by creating a dedicated technical and further education age division.
He said that not every young person will pursue an academic degree, nor should they have to.
Aqorau said trades, craftsmanship and vocational skills and practical professions be it in electricity or carpentry are critical for our economy and are honourable and needed professions to build our infrastructure and our economy.
He announced that SINU’s new Tech programme will empower youths with practical skills for immediate employment and entrepreneurship.
Aqorau said they also recognise the importance of innovation skills in the modern economy thus, with the support of UNDP, they are establishing an innovation hub on campus to nurture creativity, digital skills and start-up ideas among students.
He said they want to see the next successful Solomon Islands business ideas and social enterprises born from students’ ingenuity.
Aqorau furthered that by updating the university’s curriculum and expanding what it offers, SINU’s teaching will remain relevant to national development priorities and global trends.
He noted that graduates should not only find jobs, but should also be capable of creating jobs, leading enterprises and driving solutions far from easy.
Photo credit: Loretta B Manele
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