PENANG, May 2014 - Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) hopes to internationalised its communication studies to bring it up another level by collaborating with Asian countries particularly Indonesia and China with the establishment of a regional communication association.

The partnership was formalised by the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement between USM through the School of Communication (SoC) with a number of agencies. The agencies involved are Association of Higher Education in Communication Science and Universitas Tarumanagara of Indonesia, Jinan University of China as well as our local agency Felda Wellness Corporation Sdn Bhd.

This was stated by the Acting Vice-Chancellor of USM, Profesor Dato’ Dr. Muhamad Jantan, when he officiated the Immersion Projects, Appreciation and Tribute (IMPACT) 2014 which was held here recently.

“The effort of SoC in the internationalisation of communication studies is highly relevant to students since they can share their knowledge while ensuring the academic network and connections with the regional community are maintained,” added Muhamad.

“IMPACT is SoC final year students’ project that helps to expose students to career opportunities and foster relationships with those in the industry,” said the Dean of SoC, Associate Professor Dr. Jamilah Ahmad.

Moreover, IMPACT aims to build up the relationship between local media and SoC through the planning of various activities in future.

The 7^th IMPACT 2014 will be conducted over three days, starting from today with the various media- and communications-related programmes such as Interactive Session with Media Personality, Hosting Competition, Nostalgia with USM and Interactive Forum between Industry and Alumni.

This year, IMPACT showcased something different during the launching of IMPACT as it was held concurrent with the Professorial Public Lecture by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Student Affairs and Development) who is a former Dean of SoC, Professor Dr. Adnan Hussein, titled “Dari Bab Edh-Dhra ke Perkampungan Sejagat: Kepelbagaian, Dinamisme dan Cabaran Pengajian Komunikasi Masakini”.

Also present were the Acting Vice-Chancellor's wife, Datin Suraiya Kassim; the University's Board of Governor Professor Dato’ Dr. Omar Shawkataly; and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Industry and Community Network) Professor Dato’ Dr. See Ching Mey. - Translation: Siti Faizah Abd Halim/Text: Nor Rafizah Md Zain/Photo: Mohd Fairus Md. Isa