SMU and the Copenhagen Business School (CBS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Thursday to collaborate on the development of their respective maritime programmes to groom the next generation of industry talent. Under the partnership, students from both schools will participate in an exchange programme in which they will spend a full term at the partner university. The objective of these programmes is to develop skilled maritime talent through co-development with the private sector, as well as experiential learning through industry engagements, overseas study missions and international exchanges. SMU's School of Economics and International Trading Institute @SMU launched the Maritime Economic Concentration (MEC) in Academic Year 2013, which began in August last year with 24 students.