Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and Imperial College London have signed an agreement on 6 April 2009 that will enable these two leading universities to offer highly attractive joint Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) programmes in engineering and science.
The NTU-Imperial College Joint PhD degree programme will commence with PhD programmes in Bioengineering and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. It will subsequently be extended to PhD degrees for all engineering and science disciplines. Successful PhD candidates shall be jointly issued a PhD degree under the seal of Imperial College and the seal of NTU.
This collaboration is also a milestone for both NTU and Imperial College as this is the first time that they are offering a joint PhD programme with a partner university.
The programme is expected to be highly competitive as it offers participants the opportunity to be exposed to the research environments in two highly advanced universities in Singapore and UK. Synergistic combination of research resources, such as world-class talent and cutting-edge research facilities, is expected to draw the best students and faculties to the programme.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the joint PhD programme was signed at NTU, by Sir Roy M. Anderson, Rector, Imperial College and Dr Su Guaning, NTU President.
"We are delighted to partner Imperial College London, a world renowned institution in education and research on this very exciting joint PhD programme. The collaboration will benefit our students and facilitate and strengthen the research collaboration between the two universities through joint PhD student education. We are confident that this joint programme, which will commence with programmes under NTU's School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering (SCBE), will prove to be successful. We want to see it flourish to include all of NTU's engineering and science disciplines," says Dr Su.
Rector of Imperial Sir Roy Anderson said:
"Imperial College London and Singapore make very good partners because we share an enthusiasm for scientific exploration and innovation. This new joint PhD programme is an exciting collaboration and we look forward to seeing our students benefit from the diversity of research experience at both institutions. Formalising the strong links between Imperial and NTU means more students will benefit from the excellent combined resources available to them and the two institutions can share knowledge and build on their existing ties."
The Joint PhD Programme is a 4-year programme with students spending two years at each institution.
Students admitted through NTU will spend approximately the first year in NTU, second and third years in Imperial and then the final year in NTU. For students admitted through Imperial, they shall spend approximately the first and final years in Imperial and second and third in NTU.
The tentative date for the initial intake under the Joint PhD programme is January 2010.
A Programme Management Committee setup jointly from faculty members from both institutions will manage the programme.
The idea for the Joint PhD Programme started in 2007 when NTU and Imperial College began to engage in active discussions on research and collaboration, holding annual symposiums.