The Université Paris-Dauphine (Dauphine) and Singapore Management University (SMU) have signed an agreement to launch an international alliance unlike any others in the academic sphere.  The partnership is a sustainable one between two renowned universities focusing on Social Sciences and Management fields, and having the same holistic approach towards teaching, education and research.

The agreement was inked in Paris on 12 December at Dauphine between Professor Arnoud De Meyer, President of SMU, and Professor Laurent Batsch, President of Université Paris-Dauphine.

Professor Arnoud De Meyer said, “SMU and Dauphine will encourage collaborations on large-scale research projects, as well as multidisciplinary research which are centered around the Social Sciences and Management disciplines and are relevant to Business, Industry and Society. Together we are also committed to champion the formation of an international alliance of ‘like-minded’ academic universities and institutions.”

“This will be unlike any existing academic partnership as it will be a global alliance of universities specialising in Management and the Social Sciences, and will encompass academic programmes as well as faculty collaboration on the conduct and dissemination of Research.  We are confident that this will benefit students from all countries seeking a truly global Management Education. As societies mature, the need for rigorous, impactful and relevant multidisciplinary research cantered around the Social Sciences will increase.  This strategic alliance will enable such research by building an extended network and conducive ecosystem to support top researchers,” he added.

Both universities share the common vision of the crucial social role of universities in our societies, and strongly believe in the global nature of today’s education and research.  Founded on this basis, the strategic alliance encompasses the promotion of integrated curricula, sharing of research programmes, enhancement of student mobility, fostering of faculty and staff exchanges, creation of  common academic programmes, promotion of good practices between universities, and collaboration in the development of c ommon projects in other countries.

This alliance between Dauphine and SMU is the first step towards the implementation of a distinctive strategic network of like-minded universities in Asia, Europe and at least two other continents.  Both universities are already in talks with other high potential world-class institutions from around the world who share similar commitment towards a holistic approach to join the alliance.

[Photo: (L to R) Professor Laurent Batsch (Dauphine) and Professor Arnoud De Meyer (SMU) at the signing ceremony in Paris.]

Professor Laurent Batsch remarked, “Paris-Dauphine is faithful to her project: to train managers on sound academic foundation with a wide a range of disciplines ranging from quantitative methods to social science.  The socio-economic development of the world confirms the validity of this approach: private and public organisations need educated and open-minded leaders, able to evaluate risks, concerned by sustainable growth and promoters of good governance practices in all social structures.

The strategic commitment of Paris-Dauphine with SMU aims to promote international institutions that share this vision of leadership training.  This international alliance Paris-Singapore is the first step in a process opened to other international institutions that share the same values and goals.

Paris-Dauphine strengthens its international openness based on international mobility for all students, the multiplication of double degrees, the international recruitment of teachers, the international recognition of its research teams, and the relocation of some of its programmes.”

SMU has, in recent years, expanded the range of its institutional collaborations significantly. Beyond its strong partnerships in the US with Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and Carnegie Mellon University, it has established collaborations in research and education with high quality institutions in the UK, China, and India. In Europe, it enjoys strong student exchange programmes with University of St Gallen in Switzerland, Copenhagen Business School in Denmark, Maastricht University in the Netherlands, Université Paris-Dauphine in France and Bocconi University in Italy.