Setting a high standard for global education

MANILA, Philippines - A good education is something worth treasuring, serving as the stepping stone to a bright future ahead. Students, as well as parents, should be more discerning when it comes to the kind of school they choose. Veering away from the typical school curriculum, Southville Foreign University (SFU) offers students the advantage of graduating job-ready from day one.

By taking ambitious strides into giving their students the best kind of education possible, SFU chairman Roger Bartholomew is excited about the latest developments in SFU as they have recently finalized their partnership with one of Britain’s most distinguished educational institutions, Chester University.

Not your typical university

Since it was first put up, SFU has always partnered with international universities to give their students a global advantage, not just in terms of prestige, but the quality of the school programs that they undertake throughout their university life.

Bartholomew shares that this concept was also borne from the current demand for students to become more skilled and knowledgeable to pursue their dream careers no matter where in the world they might be.

SFU prides itself as the pioneer in “transnational education”, which Bartholomew says means equipping their students not just with the training but with the “job-ready” education, which its partner universities are renowned for - as to which university, it depends on the course program that they’re enrolled in. Currently students can choose from attractive course programs in Management, Marketing, Human Resource Management, and Computing under the School of Business and Computing; Professional Chef, Professional Hotelier, and Professional Restaurateur under its School of International Hospitality and Management; and Graduate programs in Business Administration (MBA), Masters in Information Systems Management (MSc. ISM) and Masters in Professional Nursing leading to professional registration in the UK.

A partnership with one of Britain’s most distinguished universities

Bartholomew is very proud of their course programs as each has been developed to push students to excel and bring out their very best. In the university’s continuous pursuit to finding even better ways to help their students become global achievers, Bartholomew has been in talks with representatives from Chester University - one of the most highly revered, as well as oldest universities in England; to be SFU’s latest educational partner.

“We wanted a school that has a really excellent reputation, likewise, they (Chester University) wanted to partner with a school that has really high (academic) expectations... it started out as a personal relationship, which eventually bloomed into a partnership,” says Bartholomew.

Aside from a fresh batch of Bachelor’s Degree courses, Chester University is also slated to offer (via SFU), highly competitive MBA programs that target professionals of all ages. “It can be completed in a 12-month period; we’ll be using the Chester University curriculum that has been developed to fit UK university standards.” Bartholomew adds that the SFU faculty members have been trained by representatives of Chester University to make sure that the delivery of the program is at par with the one they have back in the UK. SFU-Chester University’s MBA programs will be made available come September of this year, while the school’s first batch of students for its joint Bachelor’s Degree program is already in full swing.

Bartholomew is very optimistic of this new venture, especially the graduate program, which can be taken within the SFU premises, or for groups can be arranged to be conducted at the participating companies’ office instead. This is also the first time that SFU will be adopting the British educational model for its MBA program. “The British model is more in-depth and as such, our MBA program is on a par with other major graduate schools/programs in the UK, Europe, and Commonwealth countries,” Bartholomew adds.

While being an SFU MBA student doesn’t necessarily come cheap, it is a maxim of most successful people that quality education should never be scrimped on.

Looking forward, Bartholomew is excited for what lies ahead for SFU, aside from the further enhancement of its partnerships with prestigious universities from all over the globe and continuous improvements in facilities which are also underway. This just goes to show how committed SFU is to its mantra of nurturing global achievers.

For more on Southville Foreign University, visit www.sfu.edu.ph. SFU is located at Lima corner Luxembourg Sts., BF Homes International, Las Pinas City.