A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on 7 May 2015 between International Medical University (IMU) and University of Tasmania (UTAS), Australia to provide an additional credit transfer option for IMU’s pharmacy students. The Memorandum was jointly signed in the university’s campus at Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur by IMU’s President, YBhg Tan Sri Dato’ Dr Abu Bakar Suleiman and UTAS’s Pro Vice-Chancellor (Global Engagement), Prof Peter Frappell, witnessed by Dr Mei Ling Young, IMU’s Provost. Prof Peter Pook, IMU’s Vice President, Prof Yeoh Peng Nam, IMU’s Dean, School of Pharmacy, Prof Vishna Devi Nadarajah, IMU’s Dean, Teaching and Learning, students and many invited guests were also present at the ceremony.
Through this arrangement, credit transfer students from IMU will be required to complete the first two years of their studies in IMU before transferring to UTAS. These students will receive academic credit for the subjects they have successfully completed in IMU and use this towards the completion of their degree. After studying another two years at the University of Tasmania, the students will be awarded a pharmacy degree by the University.
Dean, School of Pharmacy, Prof Yeoh Peng Nam, said, “The School of Pharmacy is pleased to be able to provide an additional credit transfer option for students in the pharmacy programme. Without a doubt, this arrangement would offer vast benefits to IMU students. This credit transfer option gives these pharmacy students an affordable way for them to gain access to an Australian education and towards obtaining an overseas degree. It also allows students to experience the learning environments of two leading universities in Malaysia and Australia. This is certainly one of the reasons for us to continuously look for new university collaboration for students and part of its ongoing mission to train and promote excellence in the healthcare industry.” 
UTAS has been one of IMU’s Partner Universities for more than ten years. Prior to this, the university has collaborative and credit transfer arrangements with IMU for its medical programme and research. With this collaboration, UTAS will be expanding the number of IMU programmes that the university is having collaborative agreements. University of Tasmania has a growing reputation as one of Australia’s foremost teaching and research institutions. With a history spanning almost 125 years, the university is ranked in the top ten research universities in Australia and in the top two per cent of universities in the world. In addition to the credit transfer option with the UTAS, students applying for the pharmacy programme also have the opportunity to transfer the credits that they have earned in IMU to University of Otago in New Zealand or University of Queensland in Australia after successful completion of the first part of their course in IMU. Students also have the option to complete the entire pharmacy degree in IMU and obtain a Bachelor of Pharmacy (Hons) from IMU. 
