Established in 1983, and a pioneer in Malaysian private education, KDU was one of the first private colleges in Malaysia to have its own purpose-built campus in Damansara Jaya. Kolej Damansara Utama (as it was first known) opened for enrolment, offering programmes such as the GCE A-Level and the American Credit Transfer programme, and welcomed its first batch of students. In 1984, KDU introduced the first overseas twinning programme in partnership with Middlesex Polytechnic (Middlesex University), offering young Malaysians an opportunity to pursue internationally renowned programmes at a more affordable cost.