Deakin – which is the first international university to enter India with a campus in GIFT City – had been developing the campus with partners since 2021. Lancaster is the first UK university to receive approval to open an international branch campus in Indonesia.

Operational delivery at the joint campus will be led by Navitas, which already partners with Lancaster at its branch campus in Leipzig, Germany, and Deakin via its pathway college in Melbourne.

“Establishing a joint campus in partnership with Lancaster University represents an important milestone in Deakin’s long history of engagement with Indonesia,” said Iain Martin, vice-chancellor of Deakin University.

He also pointed to Lancaster’s “impressive offshore transnational education delivery record” in Ghana, Germany, China and Malaysia.

Lancaster’s partnership with Sunway University makes it the largest provider of UK TNE in Malaysia, according to HESA.

The UK university, together with its partners and the support of the Indonesian, UK and Australian governments, is “committed to making a positive contribution, building our global community of students… [and] making a positive impact to the areas in which we operate”, vice-chancellor Andy Schofield added.

Advocates for TNE delivery say that collaborative projects will be successful if they meet the demands of local governments, education providers and the students themselves.

For Navitas, the Indonesia campus is part of the company’s commitment to help universities reach more students in new locations and improve access to quality education.

The new campus will initially accommodate up to 1,500 students and approximately 100 staff, with growth plans anticipated further down the line.

Dual degrees on offer at the campus will give undergraduate students two individual degree qualifications in one integrated study program. Initially, five programs in Business and Information Technology will be delivered, with the first intake expected in September 2024.

“This exciting and innovative project builds on our track record of delivering TNE in partnership with universities around the world,” Navitas CEO, Scott Jones, said.

“It represents what is possible when world-class education providers work together”

“It represents what is possible when world-class education providers work together to respond to the global needs, challenges and demands of students, industries and governments.”

In 2020/21, HESA stats showed that 61 UK higher education providers had TNE students in Indonesia, but this partnership marks a “landmark moment” as the first UK branch campus in the country, Sir Steve Smith, the UK’s International Education Champion, said.

Sir Steve, who led a trade mission to Indonesia in November 2022, said he has “had the pleasure of spearheading sustained recent engagements in Indonesia and working closely with the Indonesian government, particularly on TNE partnerships”, as Indonesia is a priority education partner.

“I look forward to working closely with Lancaster University to further enhance the UK-Indonesia education partnership, in line with Indonesia’s ambitions to strengthen its higher education sector,” he added.