Vinayaka Missions had its inception in the year 1981 with the establishment of the Thirumuruga Kirupananda VariyarThavathiru Sundara Swamigal (TKVTSS) Medical Educational and Charitable Trust.

SIST in collaboration with the Vinayak Mission’s Research Foundation offered BSc. Biotechnology, BSc. Bioinformatics and MSc. Bioinformatics. SIST was able to produce eminent alumni such as Dr. Pubudu Samarakoon (MSc. Bioinformatics – VHRF) who is currently a senior Bioinformatics Scientist at NEC OncoImmunity AS, Norway and Dr. Minoli Perera (BSc. Bioinformatics – VHRF) who is currently in the USA.

The University of Mysore was established on July 27, 1916. It is the sixth oldest in India and the first in the state of Karnataka. Also, in a sense it is the first university of the country to be established outside the limits of the British India. It was the first University to be accredited by NAAC in 2000 with Five Star Status.

SIST in collaboration with UoM offered BSc. Biotechnology, Biochemistry and Microbiology, recognized by the University Grants Commission of Sri Lanka, for over a decade; educating many young undergraduates who are currently following their respective passions in areas ranging from molecular and clinical research to environment, food technology, nutrition and business.

The students’ association was established with the aim of providing SIST undergraduates with a multifaceted education opportunity wherein they can interact with the community and develop their soft skills while striving to provide community and environmental services. As part of this association, ‘Green Army of SIST’ was founded by Ashrifa Ali a first year SIST undergraduate as part of her British Council International Climate Champions project with the aim of inspiring a sustainable lifestyle in school children and surrounding community through dialogue and science. This organization is in its 10th year of service and is proactive in conducting grass roots level projects. The Rotaract Club of SIST was chartered under the parent club ‘Rotary Club of Mid-Town, District 3220’ in 2010 and the students successfully completed 5 years of community service and professional development projects.

Another launch in 2010 was the ‘Realms of Life Science’- biotechnology and biomedical sciences exhibition for school children. The students of SIST quickly learnt that their undergraduate education was opening new and exciting career opportunities which they were never aware of while finishing high school and considering their future higher education. So, the students hosted this exhibition free of charge inviting all high schoolers to take a tour across the world of molecular biology, genetic engineering, biopharmaceuticals, forensics sciences and more, eventually paving way for biannual exhibitions. SIST takes great pride in upholding excellence in life science education for two decades and counting.

Edinburgh Napier University, inaugurated after the famous Sir John Napier, is a public university in Edinburgh, Scotland. The university houses over 19,500 students, including those on-campus in Scotland and the students are based within one of six Schools: Applied Sciences; Health & Social Care; Arts & Creative Industries. In the 2019 QS Stars international university rankings, the quality of teaching, internationalisation and employability were all recognised, with the University scoring five stars in each category. The University overall scored four stars.

SIST’s collaboration with ENU marked a new era of affordable international education in Sri Lanka. For the first time students from all financial backgrounds and cultural diversities were able to pursue a UK degree with all the perks of an international curriculum, but without the hefty price tag associated with going abroad. BSc. (Hons) in Microbiology and Biotechnology and BSc. (Hons) Biomedical Science programs include a final year research project conducted under the supervision of SIST faculty and collaborators in public research institutes. This university grants commission recognized degree program truly exemplifies education beyond borders.

After several years of successful student led projects and taking the growing student population into account Spectrum Students’ Society was relaunched in the year 2015 with the vision of developing the human capital in our students. This framework provided the students with a platform through which they could develop inter-personal skills, communication skills, engage in dialogue and grow their individual talents in addition to excelling in academics. The separate avenues such as the Green Army and the Spectrum Performing Arts Society were brought under one umbrella of Spectrum Students’ Society.

Currently the society functions under the avenues of Community Service, Green Army. Performing Arts, Sports, Digital and Multimedia and ‘The Spectrum’ magazine.

The most recent milestone for SIST, is its collaboration with the prestigious Lincoln University College, Malaysia. Lincoln University College (LUC) in Malaysia was established in the year 2002 as Lincoln College and then upgraded to Lincoln University College in the year 2011. The university received a 5-star ranking in the year 2017 by the Ministry of Higher Education in Malaysia. The university is also a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) and a full member of the International Association of Universities (AIU). Moreover, LUC is ranked 301+ by The World University Impact Ranking by Times Higher Education in 2019. Expanding from biotechnology, this collaboration reaches out to fields such as engineering, information and communication technology and business and entrepreneurship.