United News of Bangladesh

Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), the leading university in Asean, has launched the Yunus Professional Masters in Social Business and Entrepreneurship. The professional post-graduate programme will start enrolling students in August and is likely to appeal to its intended audience of mid-career professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs. Nobel Laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus and AIT President Professor Eden Woon addressed the global launching of the programme online on Wednesday. Professor Faiz Shah, director of Yunus Centre at AIT and also the academic head of Yunus Professional Masters Programme, presented the details of the content of the programme, the Yunus Centre said on Friday. Also read: Dr. Yunus made chancellor of Malaysian University He said this programme is a one-of-a-kind masters degree to translate the vision of the Nobel peace laureate. Professor Yunus, a thought leader in social business and enterprise-led development, said: "The problems of the world are created in classrooms; they pass on to students only a narrow selfish narrative of the world." He said education is like watching the same side of the moon, again and again, never allowing the students to ask the question of what is on the other side of the moon. "In our campuses, we have to build new rockets and spacecraft to take us to the forbidden side of the academic moon. This masters degree will be an initiative to build that rocket to explore the other side," Professor Yunus said. 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." Also read: It’s universities’ job to redesign economic theories: Dr Yunus The degree will be a curated programme, built from the 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. Students learn development precepts and management principles through regular coursework and acquire practical exposure through the internship integrated into the Yunus Colloquium. AIT, the entrepreneurial heartland of Asia, 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.