About Alumni Awards
The Australian Alumni Awards in Malaysia was conceived after the Australian High Commission in Malaysia initiated the Malaysian Education Personality of the Year Award in 2010 which was presented at the Australian Alumni Gala Dinner organised by the Australian High Commission in conjunction with the Study in Australia Education Exhibition.
The baton was subsequently passed to the Malaysian Australian Alumni Council (MAAC) and in 2011, during the inaugural Australian Alumni Gala Dinner organised by the MAAC, the Education Personality Award was again presented by the Australian High Commission in Malaysia. In 2012, the award was renamed the Australian Education Achievement Award and in 2013, the Australian High Commission in Malaysia invited the MAAC to jointly present the awards where two (2) additional awards were given out, that is, the Young Entrepreneur Award and the Australian Alumni Chapter Award.
In 2014, the Distinguished Alumni Award and the Community Achievement Award were established and in 2017, the then Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia, His Excellency Mr Rod Smith added the Distinguished Young Alumni Award after deliberating between two (2) very good nominees for the Distinguished Alumni Award where one of the nominees was rather young. The Australian Alumni Awards have come a long way since its inception in 2010 with only one (1) award which subsequently evolved to five (5) awards, and in 2022 after the hiatus of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Female Alumnus of the Year award was added to the list.
Currently six (6) awards will be presented annually at the Australian Alumni Gala Dinner and these awards are the only Australian Alumni specific awards held to recognise and honour exceptional Malaysian graduates from Australian universities and institutes of higher learning. It also showcases excellence in Australian tertiary education.
Award Categories
How to Nominate
The annual Australian Alumni Awards are usually open for nomination in July and closes in October with the shortlisting of finalists being done between October and November by the senior officials of the Australian High Commission in Malaysia in consultation with the President and the three (3) Vice Presidents of the MAAC. Winners will be selected by the Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia in consultation with the President of the MAAC.
When nominations are open, the relevant nomination forms will be made available through the MAAC website; social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Telegram; email direct marketing campaigns; Australian Trade Commission (Austrade) Market Information Package (MIP) and the Australian High Commission’s social media platforms.
Please read the following guidelines before submitting a nomination to avoid any disqualifications:
- All nominees must be Malaysians and residing in Malaysia
- Current Executive Committee and Honorary Advisors of the MAAC are not eligible for nominations
- Only a maximum of FIVE (5) nominations are to be submitted by each Nominator from each category of awards
- Self-nominations are not allowed and will be disqualified
- Attachments should not be more than five (5) pages. Anything more than five (5) pages will be disregarded and only the first five (5) pages will be considered
*Nominations for 2024 are now open. The deadline for these nominations is Monday, 28 October 2024.