TSUKUBA, Oct 3 – Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) participated in the Campus-in-Campus (CiC) Meeting held at the Tsukuba International Congress Center, Japan, from October 1 to 3, 2025, and announced its hosting of the DOJO Program in 2026. The meeting brought together delegates from 14 member institutions of the CiC Network to discuss collaborative initiatives in borderless education and research. The UTM delegation comprised Dr. Syarifah Zyurina Nordin, Academic Manager (External Program) and Associate Professor Ir. Dr. Dayang Norulfairuz Abang Zaidel, Head of the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering.
The CiC Network is a global consortium of 14 leading universities committed to fostering international collaboration in education and research. From Asia, the member institutions comprise UTM from Malaysia, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University (KazNU) from Kazakhstan, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IITG) from India, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) and National Taiwan University (NTU) from Taiwan, and the University of Tsukuba from Japan, which also serves as the host institution of the CiC initiative.
Representing Europe, the consortium features Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KU Leuven) from Belgium, Ruhr University Bochum (RUB) from Germany, Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA) and University of Bordeaux (UBx) from France, as well as Utrecht University (UU) from the Netherlands.
Meanwhile, from the Americas, the network represent by the Ohio State University (OSU) and the University of California, Irvine (UCI) from the United States, along with University of São Paulo (USP) from Brazil. The three-day meeting featured comprehensive discussions across several critical areas, covering aspects of education, research collaboration, and institutional partnerships within CiC network.
The discussions on borderless education explored innovative to international education collaboration. Discussions centered on enabling student mobility initiatives across partner universities, with partners sharing experiences about various CiC programs, including problem-based learning initiatives developed jointly with multiple partner universities. A significant highlight of the session was the announcement that Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology (MJIIT), UTM Kuala Lumpur, will host the next DOJO Program among CiC members in February 2026. The DOJO Program represents a key initiative in promoting collaborative learning and student exchanges within the network, providing students with opportunities to engage in intensive, hands-on learning experiences with international peers. The session emphasized strategies to catalyze student mobility and address current challenges, presenting future initiatives that can be leveraged across the CiC network to create more opportunities for student participation and engagement.
In the CiC Joint Fund discussions, delegates focused on establishing and strengthening collaborative research through the joint fund. Discussions addressed how the fund promotes bottom-up, cross-border initiatives through collaborative research among partner universities, highlighting opportunities to initiate research collaborations and plans to establish a joint seed fund among CiC partners.
Meanwhile, the joint research creation discussions introduced current initiatives and projects that CiC partners can benefit from, including seed funds and opportunities to initiate research collaborations. The session explored various mechanisms such as internship programs, travel grants and other opportunities for researchers, presenting possibilities for CiC partners to take advantage of these initiatives. Partners shared their research priority areas, highlighting opportunities for collaboration within the network. The session also discussed joint grant applications and the creation of research centers and multilateral agreements to strengthen partnerships.
On the final day, the networking and partnership strengthening discussions – also known as the Jump-starting CiC Networking Session – focused on strengthening partnerships within the network. Discussions covered programming partnerships among CiC institutions and explored pathways for future collaborations between industry and academia. Partners examined education and curriculum development opportunities, with specific emphasis on future-oriented initiatives.
The conference also featured several side activities, including the Opening Plenary: Tsukuba Conference 2025, networking opportunities, the CiC Reception Dinner and a CiC Declaration Session where partners reaffirmed their commitment to collaborative education and research initiatives. The participation of UTM delegates underscores the university’s commitment to international partnerships and collaborative research. Through the Campus-in-Campus network, UTM continues to strengthen its global presence and create meaningful opportunities for students and researchers to engage in borderless education initiatives.
Prepared by Dr. Syarifah Zyurina Nordin, Academic Manager (External Program) and Associate Professor Ir. Dr. Dayang Norulfairuz Abang Zaidel, Head of the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, MJIIT, UTM Kuala Lumpur