In an effort to strengthen ties with its international alumni, Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), through its Alumni Centre, organized an informal gathering with alumni from Timor-Leste in Dili recently.

The event brought together graduates from various academic years, marking a reunion of those who have been part of UMS since it first welcomed students from Timor-Leste in 2015.

Director of UMS Alumni Centre, Dr. Arif Kamisan Pusiran, highlighted that the gathering served as a platform to update alumni information in the university’s database.

“This gathering also provided an opportunity for alumni to reconnect with the university community as we celebrate UMS’ 30th anniversary this year.

“A total of 30 UMS alumni from Timor-Leste attended the event, which was held at Hotel Esplanada. For many of them, this marked their first encounter with their alma mater since completing their studies,” he said.

UMS first received 15 students from Timor-Leste in 2015, who enrolled in the Diploma in Oil and Gas program under the Faculty of Engineering.

The gathering was also attended by Malaysia’s Ambassador to Timor-Leste, Amarjit Singh Sarjit Singh; Deputy Dean (Academic and International) of the Centre for Postgraduate Studies, Associate Professor Dr. Asmahani Awang; Deputy Director of UMS Outreach Centre (Finance), Zallifah Shadan; and Chief Administrator of UMS Alumni Centre, Syed Mahyuddin Syed Satri.