Welcome to the External Relations Division Royal University of Bhutan

Welcome to the External Relations Division

The University aspires to be ever more relevant and meaningful in collaborating with international institutions to enhance its teaching-learning and research profile, which in turn, will help enhance the spirit of innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurial acumen.

Due to the federated set up of the institution, with the University and its Colleges located across different parts of Bhutan, the International Relations link is a common platform to outline the University’s range of services relating to external initiatives. The link is to assist both the national academics, and aspiring international staff and students wanting to study/visit RUB to navigate the different aspects of internalization initiatives pursued by RUB, and to assist with relevant information and processes.

The University brings together its academic and students on different workshops, conferences, and symposiums to network and share learning from international best practices. Many enriching experiences have been provided, which have led to further networks and allowed the University staff and students to enter into joint projects and initiatives with external institutions. This has also ‘strengthened our relations with the international community and promoting brand Bhutan.’
Like any organizations in Bhutan, the RUB is guided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Tourism Council of Bhutan, when hosting international meetings and conferences in Bhutan, to discourage competition with the congested tourism sector, while also ensuring to give meaningful experiences to the visitors at the University.
For details relating to hosting an international conference, workshop, seminar, workshop, and symposia at RUB, you may contact the Dean of Research and Industrial Linkages (DRILs) of the Colleges or the External Relations Division at RUB, to process approvals in line with the Government regulations.

Forms:

Unlike elsewhere, the University in close collaboration with the Department of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs, Royal Government of Bhutan, facilitates visa for staff and students visiting RUB.
Anyone visiting Bhutan has to process the visa prior to their travel to Bhutan and the visa will be processed by the focal person of the College or at the Office of the Vice Chancellor, either in the External Relations Division (ERD) for short visits at the Registry Department, if the external staff is recruited by the University on a contract basis to teach at the University.

When to apply:

It is recommended that all international students aspiring to study in Bhutan submit complete documentation for the visa process, at least 45 working days prior to the departure for Bhutan to meet the requirements of the Department of Immigration, Ministry of Home and Affairs, Royal Government of Bhutan.
Academic sessions for full-time programmes begin from July-December, and therefore students applying to study as a full-time student are recommended to follow the timelines and programmes available by emailing the College or the External Relations office of RUB, to guide you to ensure that the admission criteria relating to English language proficiency, and admission requirements of the programme are met.
The website here contains all the information you need to process the visa application to RUB:

Forms for Visa

Staff Visa for visiting the Royal University of Bhutan

Student Visa for visiting the Royal University of Bhutan

Forms required

For reference to Guidelines to International Staff and Students visiting the Royal University of Bhutan click here

Note* As the Visa requirements keep changing, the person processing visa to visit the Royal University of Bhutan is asked to connect with the focal person processing it from within Bhutan for relevant and timely advice and information.

Study Abroad Guidelines

Study abroad programmes provide cultural immersion experience to the international students visiting the Royal University of Bhutan, while also creating homogeneous engagement and experiences to our national students and is therefore supported and encouraged.
In order to provide study opportunity to international students at the University, the Royal University of Bhutan hosts a number of study abroad programmes. The range of study abroad programmes are approved by the Academic Board and the defining Guidelines for the different programmes provide opportunities for a very inclusive and engaging study abroad experience. 

Available Study Abroad Programmes at RUB

Agreements (MoU and Partnerships)

 The University since its inception in 2003 has entered into partnership with a number of universities and organizations, both within and outside, to carry out academic exchanges of scholars, research projects, resource sharing, and conferences and seminars. These range of academic pursuits with reputed institutions enhance the University’s practices in innovative pedagogy and engaged research.
Such partnerships includes the formal Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which is accorded approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Office of the Attorney General and the Cabinet Secretariat. Other agreements include the Letter of Intent (LoI) and Letter of Agreement (LoA), all written agreements carried out between two or more parties to express an intention to establish a partnership. However, some very successful academic collaborations have also been established and instituted even in absence of a MoU.
If any RUB college or an external institution wants to institute a MoU with RUB, please review the processes outlined or contact the External Relations division to formalize the process.

To enter into a MoU, a  MoU Checklist provided will assist one to formalize the MoU processes at RUB.

In accordance to the recommendation of the Cabinet Secretariat in March 2017, all MoUs established at RUB are drafted according to the draft template provided:

We recommend a MoU to be established for a period of 5 years with meaningful outline of activity(ies). A MoU is vetted on an annual basis and the RUB college(s) involved with it has to submit a Report outlining its progress on an annual basis, which will serve as a basis for renewal, after the MoU period would have ceased.


Active MoUs

Some of the meaningful collaborations of the RUB in the last few years has been with the following institutions, with or without a MoU:

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The Royal University of Bhutan signed a tripartite agreement with Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources (MoENR) and International Solar Alliance (ISA) for establishing Solar Technology Application Resource Centre (STAR C) at CST, Phuentsholing.