The Singapore Institute for Management (SIM) opened its first overseas regional office in Jakarta on Tuesday to raise awareness on the private institution’s global education brand among Indonesians.

“SIM recognizes that education is an important pillar to Indonesia’s further development. Indonesians today face many options for an overseas education and making the right decision may not be an easy one,” said Lee Kwok Cheong, CEO of SIM Holdings.

“Through the SIM regional office, we hope to guide Indonesians on the opportunities for higher education with our partners.”

Indonesian students account for 23 percent of SIM’s 3,800 international students. In total, there are currently 19,000 students, including international students.

SIM partners with 10 top -ranking universities, including the University of Wollongong in Australia, the University of London of England and the University of Buffalo, the State University of New York, the United States, offering more than 80 undergraduate and postgraduate programs in management, computing, economics and more.

It also partners with local and multinational companies for internship and management trainee programs. In Indonesia, it partners with Go-Jek, GlaxoSmithKline, British American Tobacco, ASEAN Foundation and CPA Australia.

“We hope to guide Indonesians on the opportunities for higher education with our partners who are renowned global institutions as well as the benefits of studying in a modern, culturally diverse city like Singapore,” Lee said.

“We also hope that through the facilitation of exchanges between Singaporean and Indonesian students, we can promote cross-cultural learning and strengthen the long-term relations and collaborations between the two countries. (yan/bbn)