Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) in Bangkok, the entrepreneurial heartland of Asia, has launched the Yunus Professional Master’s in Social Business and Entrepreneurship.
The launching took place in a global virtual ceremony organised by AIT, the leading university in ASEAN, on Wednesday, according to a press release from Yunus Centre received on Friday.
The programme was addressed by Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus and AIT President Professor Eden Woon.
Professor Faiz Shah, Director of Yunus Centre at AIT, the Academic Head of Yunus Professional Master’s Programme, presented the details of the content of the programme.
He said this master’s Programme is a one-of-a-kind master’s programme, to translate the vision of Professor Muhammad Yunus, the Nobel Peace Laureate and thought leader in social business and enterprise-led development.
Professor Yunus pointed out in his speech that the problems of the world are created in the classrooms of the academic institutions. They pass on to their students only through a narrow selfish narrative of the world.
He said that education is like watching the same side of the moon again and again, for ever and ever, never allowing the students to ask the question what is on the other side of the moon.
“In our campuses we have to build new rockets and spacecrafts to take us to the forbidden side of the academic moon. This master’s degree will be the initiative in AIT to build that rocket to explore the other side,” the Nobel Peace Laureate said.
Highlighting the extreme urgency in solving global problems, he said, “We don’t have time to relax, it’s time to roll up our sleeves and get things done fast.”
In his inaugural speech President Eden Woon said, “Professor Yunus has inspired millions around the world. This programme will be highly attractive in this day and age when the world is not doing very well. I think this will be a highly popular course. It is one of the most meaningful programmes anybody could study.”
Yunus Professional Master’s will start enrolling students in August. It is likely to appeal to its intended audience of mid-career professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs, according to the press release.
This will be a curated programme, built from School of Environment, Resources and Development and School of Management of AIT, containing an integrated practicum led by Professor Yunus, and connected with the Social Business Academia Network connecting 91 universities located in five continents.
A 30-credit programme in the span of one academic year, this master’s programme will bring together Thailand’s top-ranking business programme, sustainability faculty ranked among the world’s top 2.0 per cent, and a curriculum designed for business creators.
AIT has accomplished the rank of top 20 in a global ranking for its commitment and performance around integrating the UN SDGs, particularly eliminating poverty, into the curriculum and research.
