DISTED College is a private college within George Town, the capital city of the

Malaysian state The states and federal territories of Malaysia are the principal administrative divisions of Malaysia. Malaysia is a federation of 13 states (''Negeri'') and 3 federal territories (''Wilayah Persekutuan''). States and federal territories Ele ...

Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...

. It was established in 1987 as the first Penang-based private tertiary institution. The college provides various pre-university, diploma and degree courses, some of which are twinned with foreign universities. The DISTED Heritage campus is on Macalister Roadin close vicinity to downtown George Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The college is wholly owned by

Wawasan Open University Wawasan Open University, abbreviated as WOU, is a private university located in Penang, Malaysia that provides working adults with access to higher education via open distance learning (ODL). It was established in 2006 and enrolled its fir ...

History

DISTED College was the brainchild of three educationists - Gajaraj Dhanarajan, Hulman Sinaga and Sharom Ahmat - who in 1985 formed DISTED Services Sdn Bhd, a private limited company. The name DISTED is the acronym for ''Distance Education'', which suited the original intention of the trio - to provide adults an alternate route to tertiary education; it was felt that, compared to high school leavers, adults had more limited prospects of obtaining higher education. However, due to the high costs of tertiary courses abroad, the trio soon had to alter their direction to cater to the youth. By 1987, contracts were signed with the British Columbia Open University, TAFE South Australia,

Murdoch University Murdoch University is a public university in Perth, Western Australia, with campuses also in Singapore and Dubai. It began operations as the state's second university on 25 July 1973, and accepted its first undergraduate students in 1975. Its n ...

and the

Warrnambool Institute of Advanced Education Warrnambool Institute of Advanced Education (WIAE) was a college of advanced education in Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia. It was created in July 1969 after the tertiary section of Warrnambool Technical College (now South West TAFE) was affili ...

to provide off-campus courses to Penangites. Within the same year, DISTED College was registered with Malaysia's

Ministry of Higher Education {{Unreferenced, date=March 2019, bot=noref (GreenC bot) A Ministry of Higher Education is a government department that focuses on the provision or regulation of institutions of higher education. In some countries these exist as ministries compounde ...

. DISTED took in its first cohort of students in 1988. At the time, it was housed inside a bungalow at Hargreaves Road in George Town. The lack of space forced the college to relocate to

RECSAM The Regional Centre for Education in Science and Mathematics (RECSAM) is a multinational educational corporation headquartered in Penang, Malaysia. It is one of the founding sister centres of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organi ...

within the suburb of

Gelugor Gelugor is a southern suburb of George Town in Penang, Malaysia. Named after a plant species, Gelugor lies along the eastern seaboard of Penang Island, between Jelutong and Sungai Dua, and nearly south of the city centre. Gelugor had been po ...

, and then to the St. Joseph's Novitiate at Kelawei Road (now part of

Gurney Paragon Gurney Paragon is a residential and retail complex in George Town, Penang, Malaysia. Situated at Gurney Drive, it was launched in 2013, and consists of a nine-storey shopping mall, two condominiums and an office block. To date, the twin condomini ...

). In 1995, DISTED College finally moved into its current premises at Macalister Road, occupying a mansion formerly owned by a prominent 19th century tycoon,

Yeap Chor Ee Yeap Chor Ee (葉祖意) was a businessman and philanthropist. He was born in the village of Nan'an, Fujian, China, in 1867. He came to Penang at the age of 17 in the 1880s virtually penniless, and found work as a barber. He rose to become the ...

. The campus was expanded in 1997. In year 2012 DISTED College's shares were entirely acquired by

Academic programmes

Pre-university

GCE A-Level The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...

(provided by

Cambridge Assessment International Education Cambridge Assessment International Education (informally known as Cambridge International or simply Cambridge and formerly known as CIE, Cambridge International Examinations) is a provider of international qualifications, offering examinations ...

) *

South Australian Certificate of Education The South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE) is awarded to students who have successfully completed their senior secondary schooling in the state of South Australia. The SACE Board of South Australia (formerly known as the Senior Secondar ...

*Foundation in Arts

Diploma

* Diploma in Accounting * Diploma in Business Information Technology * Diploma in Business Studies * Diploma in Computer Science * Diploma in Creative Multimedia Production * Diploma in Electrical and Electronic Engineering * Diploma in Food and Beverage Management * Diploma in Hotel Management

Transfer programmes

Students who have graduated with a diploma from DISTED College will have the option of undergoing any one of the transfer programmes with foreign universities. * Japan ** Diploma in Computer Science ** Diploma in Electrical and Electronic Engineering * Taiwan **

I-Shou University Formerly known as Kaohsiung Polytechnic Institute (KPI), I-Shou University (ISU; ) is a private university in Dashu District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. ISU was established in 1986 by I-Shou Lin, the founder of E United Group ( 義联集團), to commemor ...

*** Diploma in Business Studies *** Diploma in Creative Multimedia Production *** Diploma in Hotel Management * United Kingdom **

University of Gloucestershire , mottoeng = In Spirit and Truth , established = , type = Public , endowment = £2.4 m (2015) , chancellor = Rennie Fritchie, Baroness Fritchie , vice_chancellor ...

*** Diploma in Business Studies + Business and Technology Education Council Higher National Diploma *** Diploma in Computer Science + Business and Technology Education Council Higher National Diploma *** Diploma in Business Information Technology + Business and Technology Education Council Higher National Diploma *** Diploma in Creative Multimedia Production + Business and Technology Education Council Higher National Diploma **

Birmingham City University Birmingham City University (abbrev. BCU) is a university in Birmingham, England. Initially established as the Birmingham College of Art with roots dating back to 1843, it was designated as a polytechnic (United Kingdom), polytechnic in 1971 and gai ...

*** Diploma in Business Studies + Business and Technology Education Council Higher National Diploma *** Diploma in Accounting + Business and Technology Education Council Higher National Diploma **

Middlesex University Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated MDX) is a public research university in Hendon, northwest London, England. The name of the university is taken from its location within the historic county boundaries ...

*** Diploma in Hospitality Business Management + Business and Technology Education Council Higher National Diploma *** Diploma in Computer Science + Business and Technology Education Council Higher National Diploma *** Diploma in Business Information Technology + Business and Technology Education Council Higher National Diploma **

Solent University Solent University (formerly Southampton Solent University) is a public university based in Southampton, United Kingdom. It has approximately 10,500 students (2019/20). Its main campus is located on East Park Terrace near the city centre and th ...

*** Diploma in Creative Multimedia Production + Business and Technology Education Council Higher National Diploma

Degrees

HELP University HELP University ( ms, Universiti HELP; formerly known as HELP Institute, and subsequently as HELP University College) is a private university in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was founded in 1986 by its President and Vice-Chancellor, Datuk Dr Paul C ...

*Psychology *

Staffordshire University , mottoeng = Dare to know , type = Public , endowment = £70 million (2015) , administrative_staff = 1,375 , chancellor = Francis Fitzherbert, 15th Baron Stafford , vice_chancellor = Professor Martin Jones , ...

**Accounting & Finance **International Business Management **Marketing Management

Other certificates

Other courses offered by DISTED include: *

Chartered Certified Accountant Founded in 1904, the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) is the global professional accounting body offering the Chartered Certified Accountant qualification (ACCA). It has 240,952 members and 541,930 future members worldwid ...

(ACCA) from the

Association of Chartered Certified Accountants Founded in 1904, the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) is the global professional accounting body offering the Chartered Certified Accountant qualification (ACCA). It has 240,952 members and 541,930 future members worldwid ...

Pearson Test of English Academic Pearson Language Tests is a unit of the Pearson PLC group, dedicated to assessing and validating the English language usage of non-native English speakers. The tests include the Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic, PTE General (formerly known a ...

Ratings

DISTED College was awarded a five-star rating in the Malaysian Quality Evaluation System (MyQUEST) 2014/2015, which was conducted by Malaysia's

References

{{Private colleges in Malaysia Colleges in Malaysia Universities and colleges in Penang Buildings and structures in George Town, Penang Educational institutions established in 1987 1987 establishments in Malaysia