Business for Social Impact in Malaysia

Key information

Destination: Sarawak, Malaysia

Dates: July 2024

Program cost: TBC + airfares

Funding: 

• New Colombo Plan Mobility Grants available for eligible undergraduate students (amounts TBC)
• $8,817 OS-HELP Loans available for eligible students

Program eligibility: Undergraduate

Application deadline: 31 March 2024

Overview

This tour will give you the opportunity to experience the culture and society of East Malaysia. The project takes you to Kuching in Sarawak, Malaysia, where you will collaborate with local community leaders and key stakeholders in regional communities to develop business opportunities that deliver positive social outcomes.

Through a variety of learning activities and fieldwork arrangements, you will get to apply the knowledge you gain to real world challenges, building your capacity to pursue a career in entrepreneurial practice or as an innovative member of a social enterprise. The project will give you an insight into the cultural, political and regulatory environments within the Malaysian context, and the program is designed to provide tangible outcomes for both you and the local community you’ll be a part of. 

Highlights and itinerary

Note that this itinerary is tentative.

The tour will start with an “amazing race” style adventure around Kuching, where you will need to find your way around the city with a group of fellow students. This is a fun and exciting way for you to get to know the city and the other students on the program! 

Kuching is a cosmopolitan riverside city with great food, riverside markets, and many interesting natural and cultural attractions to explore. You will also spend several nights in a local village, where you will stay in a traditional longhouse and get to know the local community leaders and learn more about their culture and heritage.

There will be the opportunity to visit various sites of interest in the area, including the amazing Bako National Park, the Sarawak Cultural Village, and Semenggoh Nature Reserve, where students get the opportunity to get up close and personal with the region's favourite primate, the orangutans.

Academic information

Which unit/s can this program be taken for as credit?

BUS30030

Can this unit be taken as an elective by students in any Swinburne degree?

Yes.

Eligibility

To qualify for this program, you must:

• be enrolled into an Undergraduate degree
   

This program can be undertaken by any UG student with an elective. However, this program is also offered as part of the Social Impact Minor offered at Swinburne . As such, it aims to attract students with an inherent interest and knowledge of social impact and change. 

Sunset over Kuching City, Sarawak.