Last Thursday, Asia Pacific University (APU) and eSports Malaysia (eSM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop an eSports Academy, the first in the region that aims to actually deliver a curriculum that can create the next generation of eSports superstars to represent the jalur gemilang on the international stage.
Present for the signing ceremony were Dato’ Latt Shariman Abdullah, President of eSM and Dato’ Dr. Parmjit Singh, CEO of APIIT Education Group, of which APU falls under. Y.B Datuk Mary Yap Kain Ching, Deputy Minister of Higher Education was there to witness the history occasion.
So what does this mean for the Esports scene? Well, through the APU eSports Malaysia Academy, you can now attend semester long courses where you can hone your skills in FIFA Online, Counter-Strike, Dota 2 and League of Legends. These 4 games have been initially identified as the key focus points for the Academy at this current juncture. (Please look at Overwatch too!)
But fret not, if you are not a professional gamer, there will also be courses catered to developing professionals in the eSports ecosystem i.e team managers and shoutcasters though these courses look to be rolled out at a later date. There is certainly scope to look across the entire industry from different perspectives to identify relevant roles that can be worked towards. At the moment, classes are slated to begin in early April with admission open to general public and not only APU students.
Rinie bin Ramli, Secretary General of eSports Malaysia has shared his enthusiasm for this venture outlining that this Academy was one of the key visions of eSM in their drive to educate and develop the eSports industry here in Malaysia. His view is that this Academy will really put Malaysia on the map as one of the eSports capitals of the world.
We are certainly excited for the future of this Academy and we can envision a development of professional degrees and diplomas that can come out of this institution in the years to come.
