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Remarks by SUSS Provost Robbie Goh at the Success Academy Launch in Manila

Ms Constance See, Ambassador, Singapore Embassy in Manila
Ms Lisset Laus-Velasco, Chairman and CEO, LausGroup of Companies
Ms Kathleen Yao and Ms. Claudine Lim, Co-Founders, The Little Entrepreneur Pte. Ltd
Mr Francis Kong, Co-Founder and Director, Inspire Leadership Consultancy
Mr Jeffery Manhilot, President, Inspire Leadership Consultancy
Industry Partners, Ladies and Gentlemen

Magandang Umaga and a very good morning to all of you.

I am delighted to welcome you to the launch of our Success Academy in Manila, a project by SUSS in partnership with The Little Entrepreneur (TLE) and Inspire Leadership Consultancy, Inc (INSPIRE).

2. Thank you so much for taking the time to witness this launch.

3. As you have heard, last year, we launched three academies in Ho Chi Minh City, Beijing and Shenzhen. Over the past few weeks, we launched another three academies in Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta. After our Success Academy launch in Manila today, we will be opening another academy in Mumbai this October, making it a total of eight regional academies.

4. I must say for a small and young university like SUSS, this is quite a lot of overseas presence. It signals our commitment to our region, especially ASEAN, China and India, and to the important mission of training our students to become engaged with the peoples, cultures and societies of the region.

5. This is not only good for our students in terms of their personal and career development, but as a university for social good, SUSS also wants its students to be able to participate in the good of our neighbours as well; to work with overseas students in projects that will advance social good in their own countries.

6. This year also marks 55 years of strong diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Singapore. It’s especially meaningful that we launch the Success Academy in Manila today. Our collaboration here is yet another testament to the strong bilateral cooperation between these two countries across multiple domains, including education, trade and investment, security and defence, tourism and culture. We share similar national priorities, such as a mutual dedication to enhancing education and talent development, investing in infrastructure, and improving healthcare and social welfare. With this shared dedication, our countries continue to contribute to regional stability, economic growth, and cultural enrichment within ASEAN.

Elevating Learning & Training for Students & Industry

7. SUSS’ Success Academy in Manila is our own humble contribution to furthering the ties between our countries and peoples through international exchanges, international exchanges, industry immersions, internship opportunities, and interdisciplinary global learning that we will conduct.

8. We are also excited about getting our students and those from other institutes of higher learning in Singapore to co-learn and co-innovate with their counterparts from the Philippines, particularly in the area of social entrepreneurship which is a key area for SUSS.

9. Allow me to just briefly detail some of the things that are underway:

  • We have collaborations with notable partners, such as MIMS and Regis Partners in the Philippines. This entails overseas work attachment programmes that advance the professional preparedness of our students while addressing the dynamic talent needs of native corporations.
  • Our signature regional entrepreneurship programmes, SUSS Impact Startup Challenge and Venture Builder, will be open to budding student-entrepreneurs from both countries to be exposed to real-life opportunities and environments, and to learn how to take their concepts from lab to market.
  • Impact Startup Challenge is a six-day hackathon-styled programme that will train students on the Lean Startup methodology, as well as the tools to test their ideas and pitch to potential investors.
  • Since 2017, when SUSS became an autonomous university, more than 1,000 students in over 10 regions have participated in our 12-week Venture Builder programme. We hope to kick-start both our programmes through this Academy by next year.
  • Aside from industry partners, we also hope to work closely with local universities to co-design and co-deliver both credit and non-credit bearing interdisciplinary and experiential global learning and service-learning programmes. Experiential learning is a very big part of what SUSS does – we believe that it’s not just about happens in the classroom, but what our students learn from the communities and their engagement with them.
  • To date, we have close to 100 SUSS students learning alongside their Philippine counterparts to broaden their intercultural competencies to become responsible and effective global citizens in an inclusive and sustainable world.

9. Beyond its student focus, the Academy will also create professional training and development solutions for industry partners, organisations and institutions.

  • The Academy will act as a strategic overseas centre, building strong networks and partnerships for SUSS to work with local industries and institutions. Together, we will design programmes and achieve outcomes that address real-world demands.
  • We will also offer upskilling and reskilling opportunities for workers and our industry partners here in Manila through our Continuing Education courses which can stack up to our executive and graduate programmes, including graduate certificates, graduate diplomas, and master's programmes. So, the courses that you take here can be stacked up eventually to a full qualifications, full degrees.
  • Additionally, the Academy will leverage its partnership network to identify and facilitate meaningful overseas study and immersion trips for our post-graduate students, industry partners and executives.
  • Together with INSPIRE and TLE, SUSS Academy will offer a new professional certificate programme called the “Level Up: The Executive Leadership Programme — Shaping the Future of Work,” as part of our partnership. as part of our partnership
  • This immersive 12-week programme, designed for senior-level executives in leadership roles, features modules conducted in both the Philippines and Singapore with industry experts. The curriculum covers key topics such as Generative AI, Marketing 5.0, and Market Dynamics in ASEAN, China, and India, all of course highly relevant in today’s business landscape.

From Impacting Singapore to the Region

10. The SUSS brand is defined by our commitment to learning for life, experiential engagement across the ASEAN, China, India (ACI) region, and social good. With regional academies now in eight cities, SUSS will work closely with university and industry partners to expand our influence and create positive change that benefits communities and industries in Singapore and in our partners. We are profoundly grateful for the trust and support extended by our governments, partners, and students in advancing our mission.

11. I would like to extend, at this time, my gratitude to TLE and INSPIRE our steadfast partners and friends in the Philippines, and to our dedicated SUSS Student Success Centre team whose efforts have transformed this vision into reality.

12. I am also very grateful to Ms Constance See, Ms Lisset Laus-Velasco, Ms Yao, Ms Lim, Mr Kong, Mr Manhilot and all dignitaries for joining us today to witness this triumphant milestone.

13. I look forward to the deeper ties and collaborations that we will see in years to come, and more partnerships that will benefit the people and societies of both our nations.

Maraming salamat.


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