بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalamualaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh
Kolej International Graduate Studies (KIGS) was incorporated in 2002, at the midst of when there were a significant number of Bruneians who could not proceed to higher level studies in the public sector institutions either because of limited places available for those who were qualified or inadequate number of ‘A’ and/or ‘O’ levels to qualify them for higher level courses or programmes. The opening up of the Kolej was timely and appropriate as it provides both categories of students with the opportunity to pursue their dream of achieving higher academic qualifications.
In June 2004, KIGS started offering the first two BDTVEC programmes in the areas of Business and Finance and Computer Studies at Pre-National Diploma and National Diploma qualifications, awarded locally by the Brunei Darussalam National Accreditation Council. Thirty-five (35) students registered for the two programmes and 5 lecturers were involved in the delivering of these programmes. At a later stage of development, KIGS took the challenge of running Diploma and degree level programmes, which were awarded by international institutions recognised by Brunei, such as Lim Kok Wing University and the University of Malaysia Sabah (UMS). We are thankful to the previous administration(s) for bringing KIGS’s level of achievement to a standard that is much to be proud off and it certainly has provided a strong foundation for KIGS to move ahead to the next level of achievement.
Today a number of significant developments have taken place after 13 years of operation. KIGS is now offering 13 different programmes including 5 at degree level qualifications and there are 6 more new programmes in the pipeline to be offered in 2019 if approval is given by the Brunei Accreditation Council. Currently Kolej IGS has about 400 students enrolled in various programmes ranging from certificate level to degree level programmes. We are looking forward to accepting more students in the upcoming years. The Kolej is now employing 50 lecturers, half of whom are locals with master qualifications, and a few administrative and supportive staff. This means that teacher to student ratio is as low as 1 teacher to 8 students.
Prospective students who are looking for better interactions with teachers and learn more from being closely supervised and coached by them, Kolej IGS is the ideal institution for you. The low teacher to student ratio has enabled us to implement our focus on making KIGS as C.A.R.E (Centre for Achievement and Rewarding Experience) effectively. Projects and activities are especially planned for students to enrich their personal experience. They are encouraged to participate in local and regional competitions in educational and social areas so that there is more opportunities for high levels of achievement and rewarding experiences.
The academic years 2019-2023 will see some changes in the emphasis given to institutional development activities in order to build the capacity of the institution to move forward in pursuit of excellence in the provision of educational services to the public. Our recent Strategic Planning exercise with institutional staff (academic and administrative) conducted early this year has revealed a number of less favourable situations or issues which need to be addressed to maximise our capacity to contribute to the achievement of Wawasan 2035. The areas which will be given more emphasis on in the up coming years include marketing; communication; programme quality and management; internal quality assurance; staff development; industry collaboration, and students centric services. The idea is to improve the employability of students by enhancing programme relevance as well as the development of ‘values and characters’ in our students. In particular, the Kolej will be making extra efforts to nurture students to be self-disciplined, to respect and care for others, to take up responsibilities and to internalise learning to learn through enrichment programmes and involvement in community service.
Dr. Azaharaini Hj. Mohd. Jamil
December 2018
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