Sasin School of Management recently signed a partnership agreement with Meiji University, one of the largest and most prestigious private universities in Japan. The agreement includes student and faculty exchanges, research and data collaboration, and the establishment of liaison offices at both institutions. Professor Ian Fenwick, Director of Sasin, and Professor Koji Yoshimura, Dean of the Professional Graduate School of Meiji University, signed the MOU during a ceremony at Sasin School of Management’s Royal Hall. They were joined by Sasin Deputy Directors Chaipong Pongpanich, Nick Pisalyaput, and Supaporn Chanchamroen, and by Meiji University’s Masaki Kirihara, Professor Takamasa Fujioka, and Masaki Ichihori. Professor Fujioka is also a Sasin faculty member, and the founder of the Sasin Japan Center (SJC). Professor Fenwick noted the strategic importance of this agreement for both schools. “Thailand and Japan have strong, deep economic and cultural ties so it’s very important for us to expand and enhance our academic and our business connections,” he said. “Meiji University is one of the most respected institutions in Japan, so we’re excited about the potential exchanges and collaborations that will come from this agreement.” Assistant Professor Chaipong Pongpanich, who studied and has taught in Japan, knows the value of these kinds of partnerships. “I have long-standing personal connections with Japan, so I have first-hand experience of the power of cross-cultural exchange,” he said. “We all live and work in a multi-cultural, global environment, so the more opportunities we give our students to get global business experience, the better equipped they’ll be to find success in their careers.” Sasin School of Management has been a pioneer in establishing partnerships with top schools around the world since its inception in 1982 and has recently partnered with a number of schools in the US (MIT Sloan School of Management), China (Fudan University and Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management), and in Europe (Grenoble Ecole de Management – GEM). Sasin now has 36 exchange partners in 16 countries. Sasin School of Management was the first business school in Thailand to earn international accreditation – from both the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and the European Foundation for Management Development (EQUIS). Sasin has a strong tradition of internationalization, and actively cooperates with many world-renowned institutions to provide students with international platforms for action learning. Meiji University was founded as a law school in 1881, and was granted university status in 1920. It is a private university with four campuses in Tokyo and comprises 10 undergraduates schools and 16 graduate schools, with approximately 33,000 students. Meiji Business School specializes in Asian Business, Family Business, and Start-ups, and was the first EPAS accredited (EFMD) business school in Japan.