King’s College London has marked a major milestone in its global education strategy with the launch of a new transnational education program in Singhasari, Indonesia. The initiative, developed in partnership with local institutions and regional stakeholders, aims to expand access to world-class higher education while fostering cross-border collaboration in teaching and research. Positioned at the heart of a rapidly developing educational hub, the programme is designed to equip students with internationally relevant skills and knowledge, while supporting Indonesia’s broader ambitions for innovation, digital transformation and lasting growth.
Strategic significance of the Singhasari partnership for King’s global education ambitions
By embedding its teaching and research within Indonesia’s rapidly evolving innovation hub, King’s is staking out a bolder role in shaping the future of global higher education. The collaboration allows students and academics to work at the intersection of technology, policy and society, opening routes into Southeast Asian networks that are frequently enough difficult to access from London alone. It also strengthens King’s ability to co-create curricula that reflect regional priorities, from sustainable urban development to digital health, while retaining the academic rigour and quality assurance associated with UK higher education.
Crucially, the initiative serves as a testbed for new models of transnational education (TNE) that are more collaborative than transactional.Rather than simply exporting programmes, King’s and Singhasari are building shared platforms for innovation, enabling:
- Joint curriculum design that blends local expertise with global perspectives
- Cross-border research clusters focused on real-world impact in the region
- Flexible learning pathways that combine online, on-site and London-based study
- Industry-embedded projects with technology partners in the Singhasari ecosystem
| Strategic Focus | Key Benefit for King’s |
|---|---|
| Presence in Southeast Asia | Expanded regional influence and partnerships |
| Innovation-led campus model | Live habitat for testing new TNE formats |
| Digital and AI capabilities | Faster integration of emerging technologies into teaching |
How the transnational programme enhances access quality and student experience in Indonesia
The new collaboration at Singhasari brings world-class teaching and research closer to home for Indonesian learners, removing barriers of distance, cost and limited local provision. Designed with regional partners, the programme aligns King’s academic excellence with Indonesia’s rapidly evolving skills landscape, offering flexible pathways that blend on-campus delivery, digital learning and industry engagement.Students benefit from shared learning platforms, co-taught modules and joint supervision, ensuring that a degree gained in Indonesia reflects the same academic rigour and global outlook as one earned in London.
Beyond curriculum, the initiative is reshaping what it means to study in East Java by enhancing campus life, student support and graduate readiness. Learners can access:
- Dual academic support from King’s staff and Indonesian faculty
- Career-focused projects co-designed with local and international employers
- Mobility options including short study visits and virtual exchanges
- Wellbeing services tailored to diverse cultural and socio-economic backgrounds
| Feature | Benefit for Students |
|---|---|
| Joint curriculum | Globally recognised learning, locally grounded |
| Industry-linked modules | Stronger employability and real-world skills |
| Blended delivery | Greater flexibility and inclusive access |
| Shared research hubs | Early exposure to innovation and collaboration |
Curriculum design faculty collaboration and quality assurance across borders
At the heart of the new programme is a co-created curriculum, shaped through ongoing dialog between academic teams in London and Singhasari. Joint working groups meet regularly to align learning outcomes, assessment standards and teaching methods, ensuring that students in Indonesia experience the same academic rigour as their peers in the UK while engaging with locally relevant case studies and industry contexts. This collaborative model moves beyond simple syllabus export; it embeds shared ownership of course design, with module leaders from both institutions jointly curating reading lists, digital resources and project briefs that reflect diverse perspectives and regional expertise.
To protect academic standards across borders, a robust quality framework has been established, mirroring King’s existing assurance processes while responding to Indonesian regulatory requirements. Cross-site peer review, shared exam boards and continuous feedback loops from students and employers form the backbone of this framework, supported by a dedicated oversight committee.
- Co-designed modules reviewed by mixed UK-Indonesia academic panels
- Shared digital platforms for curriculum updates,assessment moderation and feedback
- Joint staff development sessions focused on pedagogy,inclusivity and intercultural learning
- Annual curriculum audits informed by student outcomes and industry input
| Element | Led by | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Module review | Joint faculty team | Every semester |
| Assessment moderation | Cross-border exam board | Each assessment cycle |
| Teaching observations | Peer reviewers (UK & Singhasari) | Twice yearly |
| Quality report | Programme oversight committee | Annually |
Policy recommendations for scaling sustainable transnational education models in Southeast Asia
To support long-term regional impact,governments,universities and industry need to move beyond ad hoc partnerships and invest in co-designed regulatory frameworks that recognize joint curricula,shared quality assurance and flexible mobility routes. Education ministries across Southeast Asia can accelerate this by creating mutual recognition pathways for micro-credentials, piloting sandboxes for innovative teaching models and incentivising green campus infrastructure in cross-border projects. Aligning visa policies with student mobility cycles,while streamlining work rights for graduates in priority sectors such as digital health,climate tech and social innovation,would allow initiatives like the Singhasari collaboration to seed a more inclusive skills ecosystem. In parallel, funders should prioritise needs-driven research consortia that pair UK and Southeast Asian institutions with local communities, ensuring that knowledge flows are not one-directional.
- Shared standards: Establish regional quality benchmarks co-authored by ASEAN and partner universities.
- Equitable governance: Embed local universities as equal decision-makers in programme design and evaluation.
- Digital inclusion: Subsidise connectivity and devices for low-income students to access blended provision.
- Climate resilience: Tie public funding to low-carbon operations and climate-smart campus planning.
| Priority Area | Key Policy Action | Expected Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Access & Equity | Regional scholarships & fee caps | More diverse student cohorts |
| Quality & Trust | Joint accreditation panels | Comparable degrees across borders |
| Innovation | Regulatory sandboxes | Faster rollout of new learning models |
| Local Impact | Community co-created curricula | Programmes tailored to local needs |
Strategic coordination at the ASEAN level can knit these elements together, using the Singhasari model as a living laboratory for multi-country replication. By linking TNE policy to existing regional agendas on digital transformation and sustainable development, policymakers can avoid duplicating efforts and instead channel resources into scalable hubs that serve multiple jurisdictions. Transparent data sharing on student outcomes, carbon footprints and community benefit should become a condition of public and philanthropic financing, enabling evidence-based course corrections and keeping transnational partnerships accountable to the communities they serve.
The Way Forward
As King’s embarks on this new chapter in Singhasari, the partnership signals more than a geographic expansion; it reflects a broader shift in how world-leading universities are reimagining access to education, research and innovation.
By embedding its transnational education programme in one of Indonesia’s emerging innovation hubs, King’s aims to build long-term academic links, develop future-ready graduates and contribute to the country’s knowledge economy.
With the first cohort now in place and further programmes planned, the Singhasari initiative will serve as a testbed for new models of international collaboration-one that King’s leaders say could shape the university’s global engagement for years to come.
