Australian Students Prefer Indonesia For Indo-Pacific Studies

JAKARTA, Dec 1 (Antara) - Indonesia is the most popular destination for young Australians to learn, and gain a better understanding, about the Indo-Pacific region through lectures and internships, Australian Charge d'Affaires Justin Lee has said. Therefore, the Australian government provides a prestigious scholarship program called the New Colombo Plan for Australian students to live, learn and gain experience working in Indonesia during 2017, a statement from the Australian Embassy in Indonesia received here on Wednesday said. "The experiences they have and the friendships they build will help shape the Australia-Indonesia relationship more closely in the years to come," Lee said. The students can learn a variety of disciplines, including engineering, research on health and public health, law, sustainable development, and marine biology at University of Gadjah Mada (Yogyakarta), Parahyangan Catholic University (Bandung, West Java), University BINUS (Jakarta), University of Indonesia (Jakarta), and Udayana University (Bali). They will also gain valuable experience by participating in internships and mentoring with government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and private companies. The recipients of the New Colombo Plan 2017 will join more than 1,100 grantees of the New Colombo Plan mobility grant in Indonesia. Thus, the total number of Australian students receiving the New Colombo Plan scholarship to Indonesia in the first four years is more than 3,100. In late 2017, the New Colombo Plan will have supported 17,500 young Australians to stay, do internship, and study in the Asia-Pacific region, including in Indonesia.