One on One

To Nurture Dreams

Naziba Basher

	Terence Tan, Photo courtesy: Terence Tan

Terence Tan came to Bangladesh with Raffles Institute of Higher Education, Dhaka, as college director, a little more than a year ago with high hopes. Now, one year and two months later, not only is he the proud director of the institute, he still has high hopes and big dreams for the institute and the students. Raffles Institute of Higher Education has 38 colleges in 14 countries all across the Asia Pacific, recently celebrating their first year in Bangladesh.

Star Campus speaks with Terence Tan, the director himself.

SC (Star Campus): How far do you think Raffles Institute of Higher Education, Dhaka has come during their stay here in Bangladesh?

TT (Terence Tan): In the one year that we have been here, we have become better known amongst the mass population of the city. The students' enrolment has been slow and steady but we are expecting bigger things. In terms of reputation, our standing is pretty high. In terms of reliability, the parents are assured that we take care of the students like our own children. We work on building their character with the utmost dignity here in the institute. We take a very different approach to education and we believe in being a trailblazer. We are hoping for more people in the country to recognise that.

SC: What were your expectations on establishing an educational institute here in Dhaka? Did you have a particular mindset of what the students may be like?

TT: I came here with an open mind. I had no particular expectation. The aim was to attract the brightest and most talented young minds of the country. And they really are just as bright, talented and different as I had hoped for them to be. I hope for them to be able to work in the biggest names in the local industries here and even foreign ones like Singapore Airlines or Eastcom Peace since we set up an internship programme for the students during the end of their studies here. We want to secure a good place for the future of our students and make sure they contribute to the global industries.

SC: Tell us a little about the faculty members of your institute.

TT: We have seven lecturers, so far, for five departments (Fashion Design, Fashion Marketing and Managements, Business, Interior Design and Visual Communication) and we have more coming in. Our faculty is from all over the world including countries like the USA, Belarus, Germany, Spain and Peru. They all have industry oriented experience in their respective fields and they are here to share that experience with the students and inspire them further. The faculty members are more than just lecturers for the students. They are also here for the students if at anytime they face any kind of trouble. It is not just 'teach and go' for them. As much as they are there to guide the students, they also give them the space they need to think outside the box and be creative in their own ways.

SC: What are your future plans for this institute and what would you say the mass population in this country would find different and more useful for them here?

TT: We are here for the long run and we are working towards making a bigger name. Right now, we are looking forward to making our own campus. We want the bright future that the young minds in our institute really deserve. With the kind of young talent in our institute, they are bound to make a very positive impact in the future of Bangladesh. Apart from our international standards of education and our internationally recognised curriculum, we have a lot to offer to the students who have enrolled or want to enrol into our institution like, experienced faculty lecturers and state-of-the-art facilities.