Australia Centre Medan

The Australia Centre Medan was established in June 1994 to service the expanding education and training needs of Medan and North Sumatra. Its establishment reflected the growing importance of Medan as a cultural centre, regional hub and emerging gateway for trade, agriculture, manufacturing, commerce and tourism to the growth triangle spanning Northern Malaysia, Southern Thailand and North Sumatra. The recent focus on regional autonomy and decentralization of economic and political power to the provinces makes the establishment of the Australia Centre Medan particularly timely. The Centre was first established by Insearch:UTS, in conjunction with an Indonesian Educational Foundation (Yayasan). It was a co-operative venture between Insearch:UTS and the Indonesian Foundation. The Australia Centre Medan has evolved into a unique multi-functional centre which under one roof represents the best in Australian education, business, culture and government services. When it first opened, the Centre housed an Australian Consulate, an Austrade office, an Australian institution affiliated language centre, an IDP Education office, an IELTS Administration Centre, a DETYA funded Australian Studies Resource Centre, an AEI badged presence, an Australian immigration consultant and a variety of other Australian focused activities. Now the Centre still houses an Australian Consular Warden and an Australian Studies Resource Centre. The Centre also features a Language and Testing Centre (with over 1,000 students, mainly teenagers from Medan's elite high schools who are preparing for study abroad), including Education Counselling and an independent Student Placement Centre forStudy in Australia which has recently replaced the IDP office. This unique combination of sectors ensures that the Centre has the highest profile of any Australian organisation in Sumatra. It also offers a more complete service to the local community than any other country's representative offices outside the capital city.