Chennai college signs pact with UK university

February 02, 2010 08:01 pm | Updated 08:01 pm IST - London

The serene campus of Madras Christian College in East Tambaram. File Photo: A. Muraitharan

The serene campus of Madras Christian College in East Tambaram. File Photo: A. Muraitharan

The Madras Christian College in Chennai has signed its first major partnership agreement with the UK’s Queen’s University Belfast, which already has close links with several institutions in India.

The new partnership with QUB will facilitate student exchanges and exploit learning opportunities in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at both institutions.

Currently four exchange students from Queen’s are studying at MCC in the fields of English, Politics, Anthropology and Geography and Paleoecology.

The first reciprocal visit to Queen’s by students from MCC will take place later this year.

The new partnership with MCC comes just weeks after Queen’s University installed His Excellency Kamalesh Sharma, Secretary of the Commonwealth and former Indian High Commissioner to the UK as its Chancellor.

Principal of MCC, Professor Alexander Jesudasan joined Professor John Thompson, Head of Queen’s School of English, to sign the new agreement at an event attended by Chris Gibson, the British Council’s Director for South India.

Funding to facilitate the new links was secured by the School of English at Queen’s following receipt of a grant from Phase II of the Prime Minister’s Initiative Scheme.

Speaking at the event, Professor Thompson said, “Like Madras Christian College, Queen’s University Belfast has been home to a vibrant and diverse academic tradition of excellence for many decades”.

He added, “Teaching links between the island of Ireland and Chennai have been ongoing since the arrival of missionaries in the 18th and 19th centuries. This exciting new partnership will now see a whole new generation of scholars exploiting vital learning and research opportunities in Chennai and Belfast; building on our shared histories and identities“.

Professor Alexander Jesudasan added, “We are delighted with our new academic partnership with Queen’s University Belfast and look forward to seeing this relationship flourish in the future.”

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