Gateway College was founded in 1993 in Bali and was then called Arne Næss Center for Echology and Philosophy (ANCEP). The great Norwegian philosopher Arne Næss lectured at our center at this time. Gateway College offers university - and college studies abroad. In Bali we work in cooperation with Telemark University College and University College of Sogn og Fjordane. We have developed a good relationship with Udayana University in Bali and we will work to establish cooperation in several areas with counterparts in Indonesian organizations and educational institutions. Gateway College is a large organization with over 320 students in Bali. Our lecturers come from various colleges and universities in Norway. We also invite guest speakers from Bali. Gateway College offers academic programs at bachelor level in, Practical and Theoretical Sport, Exphil / Exfac, Cultural Psychology, Intercultural Communication and Indonesian language.
Our administration works to recruit good lecturers. This semester, the volleyball champion, Vegard Høidalen, has been one of our lecturers. Professor Unni Wikan, from the University of Oslo, has given lecturers for our students previously, and she also wants to lecture on her book on Cultural Psychology this semester. At Gateway College the studying is the primary focus and the center management will arrange an academically improving semester at our campus in the fishing village of Jimbaran.
The center management at Gateway College in Bali consists of Country Manager Annica Eriksson, Program Director for Humanities and Social Sciences Ivar Schou, Head of Department for Sport Martin Staxrud, Student Coordinator Morten Aas and Resident Director Iwayan Gunayasa.
To work with students in Bali means responsibility and exciting challenges. We cooperate well with the Indonesian Embassy in Oslo and the Norwegian Embassy in Jakarta as well as the Norwegian Seamen's Church. The center management works to create a safe and good life for students and an interesting learning environment. We want to create a good atmosphere and a positive framework for all those who choose to study at Gateway College in Bali.
It is a great joy to experience the beginning of each semester and the students' reactions when they face the Indonesian culture, after having flown half the globe, to one of the most exotic places of our time. The students will never forget the hospitality, kindness and the gentle faces when meeting the people of Indonesia.
We organize trips to famous tourist attractions in Indonesia, and we have learned that our students often are a tourist attraction as well. Each semester, we visit Yogyakarta in Java and the Borobudur Buddhist temple, located just outside this cultural city of Indonesia. Many of the local Indonesian tourists tend to loose, for a moment, their interest in their own cultural treasures and focus more on the Norwegian students, who they want to interview and photograph. Again, the friendliness and curiosity from the locals arouse our attention.
As a leader, it is important to contribute to a meaningful time for the students. We arrange tours and initiate humanitarian projects that students can attend. The students can work in various committees such as social -, health - safety -, sports - and party committees. The students’ involvement in relation to the slum-project in Jakarta and several orphanages in Bali have benefited children and adults who have difficult living conditions.
To be a leader at Gateway College in Bali is primarily a task characterized by joy and meaningfulness. The work with students in a cultureal setting so different from our own gives perspectives on life and makes us constantly develop in the job, but also as a person. To be a leader at the study center in Jimbaran is to be merged in a magical world that never stops to amaze you!
Regards Ivar Schou