A new international program and an English-language center at the state-run Bandung Institute of Tourism (STP Bandung) in West Java and the Bali Institute of Tourism (STP Bali), run in collaboration with Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia, were officially launched on Friday.

Inaugurated by Tourism Minister Arief Yahya in Bandung, the program features a culinary class in STP Bandung and hotel administration in STP Bali; they both combine local and international-standard curricula.

The first class consists of 10 fourth-year students who have met all the requirements including scoring 5.5 on their IELTS tests.

The students will fly to Melbourne to study and engage in an internship program in the hotel industry.

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“They have agreed on a commitment that when they return to Indonesia they will become trainers for their juniors,” said STP Bandung head Faisal Kasim.

The students will receive two certificates when they graduate; a diploma from STP Bandung or Nusa Dua Bali and an Advanced Diploma in Hospitality Management from Victoria University.

The program will open its intake in August. 

At the same event, Arief also officiated the English Learning Centre (ELC) in cooperation with the Indonesia-Australia Language Foundation. ELC offers IELTS preparation and testing.

IELTS is regarded as the most strategic English test as it is recognized in more than 135 countries and can be used to apply for studying, immigration and professional accreditation. Not only for students, the program is open for STP lecturers and staff members, as well as the public.

Victoria University's director of new business and Outer West Campus, Jackson Doherty, said such cooperation in international classes was a first in Asia. "This is the beginning of our partnership and we expect that to continue." (kes)