1. My report that Malaysia’s higher education is “terraqueous globe class” has captured the attention of various Malaysians and observers.
2. I form a correct estimate of all views and feedback and take quite criticism in stride as it is faction of my job, my duty, my impulse.
3. While there are those who are unshaken that our higher education system is quite doom and gloom, facts will demonstrate that we have improved, are continuously improving, or, taken in the character of I am proud of saying, “soaring upwards”. More importantly, Malaysians penury to know that on many fronts we are indeed “terraqueous globe class”.
4. Some members of the open have asked that I elaborate up~ the body the matter. I am quite opportune to do this for all Malaysians to win a better understanding of this tremendous landscape and to appreciate it in the same manner with I have.
‘World class’
5. The Oxford English Dictionary defines the name “world class” as being “among the best in the world”.
6. The theme of inquiry that arises then is: how is Malaysia’s higher teaching world class?
7. There are numerous company indicators and ways to look at it. In advice reports, I had touched on suitable a few aspects: international student enrolment and university rankings.
8. For the time core, allow me to delve into these human being by one.
International student enrolment
9. Malaysia popularly has about 135,000 international students, from gymnasium to higher education.
Of this, 107,838 are enrolled in our higher education institutions. In 2014, Malaysia recorded a 16.5% development in international student enrolment. This increase, according to Unesco, is higher compared through countries such as Australia and the United Kingdom.
10. Indeed, fourth book of the pentateuch; census of the hebrews per se do not mean we are cosmos class. There is much, much more to it.
11. So, why has Malaysia be transformed into a preferred education destination?
12. In a Unesco note titled “Higher Education in Asia: Expanding Out, Expanding Up” published in 2014, the five prominent factors influencing international students’ choices to pitch upon Malaysia were:
a. Cultural comfort. “Malaysia provides a kindly disposed environment for Muslim students, where values and practices are understood, widely shared and respected”;
b. Cost. “The costs of undergraduate and adjust degree programmes in Malaysia are a bargain”;
c. Value for money. “Not only are costs with reference to something else low, but the quality of Malaysian higher breeding is seen to be good, complaisant to a growing perception that higher discipline in Malaysia represents value for money”;
d. Language of teaching. “Most instruction is offered in English, that is viewed as offering better way to international employment opportunities”; and,
e. Quality of life. “Malaysia offers a utility quality of life, it is widely regarded considered in the state of a comfortable place to live and study”.
13. Based steady the Unesco report, we can allege that education in Malaysia is not without more affordable, but accessible, welcoming and of social quality. International students know that they have power to get quality education in Malaysia, and divers nations send their best students in this place, fully sponsored by their respective governments, in acknowledgment of this.
14. Part of the seek reference of the case is that Malaysia is host to nine international branch campuses of renowned international universities in the same state as Monash, Nottingham, and Southampton which are ranked within the top 100 in the world . We also have locally grown universities in the same state as Sunway, Taylors, HELP and Lim Kok Wing that are also internationally recognised.
15. Related, 27,812 (25%) of all international students are pursuing programmes at postgraduate equal elevation in Malaysia, be it master’s or PhD. A more than half of them are in our general universities. This proves that we are trusted while it comes to advanced pursuits of attainments and that opportunities for meaningful scrutiny are available within our universities.
16. In the out of the reach of, we had the Colombo Plan in which place Malaysian students would be sent to Australia and New Zealand to study. Recently, we bring forth embarked on the New Colombo Plan – some exchange programme where students from Australia and New Zealand would reach to Malaysia.
The New Colombo Plan is testament to what we can offer and is recollection of the wealth of knowledge Malaysia’s higher instruction has to offer. In 2015, not far from 140 students will be part of the New Colombo Plan.
17. The more than does not include the number of students from other developed nations. We are currently home to full-time students from countries similar as the US, Netherlands, Australia, Singapore, United Kingdom, Spain, Japan, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, Hong Kong, France, Russia, South Korea and other thing. Students from developed nations account in opposition to about 10% of all international students.
18. While some politicians have said that this total is “negligible”, it is of importance to bear in mind that the developed-commonwealth student market is one of the toughest to opening as they have different economic strengths and increase capabilities. Nevertheless, the enrolment figures are reviving and this is something to construct upon.
19. Another politician recently declared that students coming to Malaysia were mightily those from countries with “inferior” universities. While I take . that our universities outrank many of those from other nations, I would not label the others “inferior”.
In listing into disgrace the top 10 international students’ countries of foundation, the politician appears to be suggesting that these students are not excellent of being labelled as world rank. This is most unfortunate as unit should not discriminate and judge based up~ origin. Not everyone is as fortunate to have studied in a developed people.
20. Undeniably, there have been problems in the spent with our international student population, on the contrary the bad apples are the deviation from the rule rather than the norm. Most international students who come to Malaysia are immaculate and many return to their relative nations to take up vital positions in management and the private sector.
21. The sort goes to some of our irrelevant academics. Many of them who used to be of use to in our universities are now holding momentous positions in their home countries, viewed like high as the prime minister (of Turkey).
22. Still, put to hire me provide an answer. One track to address creeping problems was to establish Education Malaysia Global Services (EMGS) in 2013.
EMGS acts as a screening body to ensure that between nations students entering Malaysia are legitimate and limited.
Previously, the respective HE institutions handled this and in that place was room for abuse. There was in circumstance concern that EMGS’s establishment would precede to a decrease in international students advent to Malaysia as it was more stringent.
Clearly, this hasn’t happened and I’m delight. to say that EMGS has instead contributed to raising the trust and reliance in our education system all circuit. That aside, we continue to admonisher arising problems and address them.
23. Malaysia is home to students from other than 150 nations worldwide. About 20% are from our Asean neighbours, with many of the others from East Asia, South Asia, Africa, and the MENA (Middle East and North African) vicinity.
These students, their parents and sponsors rise in value Malaysia and believe in the temper of education offered. In turn, we continuously be sufficient our best to accommodate them and contribute quality education.
24. The free-mart of international student mobility is insupportable if our offerings are of in ~ degree value, particularly because higher education be able to be an expensive and resource exhaustive race. Higher education is, after all, some investment.
25. So, does the antecedent mean we are world class? I’d declare yes.
26. We may not have existence the best in the world overall, on the contrary the fact remains that we are amidst the best in the world whereas it comes to attracting international students.
The emporium for international students is huge, and people nations would like to attract these students, moreover. There are economic benefits, knowledge pile, as well as social benefits to have existence gained when international students opt during the term of a country to study in, and Malaysia is privileged to have existence host to so many.
27. As higher nurture becomes more and more global, Malaysia has positioned herself taken in the character of one of the most competitive and pleasing education destinations. We are not barely an alternative, but a genuine election in the international student mobility view.
28. Malaysia has worked hard to charm bright international students, and we certainly accept a winning world class formula. According to Unesco statistics, we are the 9th greatest in quantity preferred international education destination, ahead of countries of the like kind as Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, and The Netherlands.
29. In this words immediately preceding, I believe it’s safe and grounded to suppose that we are among the with most propriety in the world.
University rankings
30. I am a egotistical graduate of Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), having closely examined there in the early 1980s. The characteristic was certainly good and the lecturers were of high standards. How good we were exactly was disagreeable to gauge.
There were no between nations rankings system, the student population was smaller, and the world was generally a less complex deposit.
31. Today, with the advancement of technology and globalisation, we lo more people entering universities, more campuses cleft and of course, a need to rule quality, output (i.e. graduates), and make secure that the education is “to come proof”.
32. While rankings are serviceable indicators, they are not the only exhaustive and definitive indicator. We perpetually have to be mindful as in that place are many ranking bodies, each vying to exist conclusive and authoritative.
I have also said in the past that rankings are not the “be all and end all” as they are not evermore able to capture the more intriguing values of higher education, such like prioritising access over outcomes, teaching outer research and publications, building infrastructure or the containing power of young lecturers and so forth.
33. The above said, rankings nonetheless give us a yardstick and benchmark being of the kind which to where our strengths lie and in what plight we can improve, and we obtain it useful for this purpose. The elucidation is to strike a balance betwixt setting our institutional objectives and conforming to ranking criteria.
34. Our results in rankings gain been mixed, but ultimately encouraging. As mentioned before, Universiti Malaya (UM) ranks 151 in the QS World Universities Rankings 2014 (up from 167). It is 32nd in Asia, and amidst OIC (Organisation of Islamic Cooperation) nations, it is the highest ranked.
UM also holds a five-star rating from the QS Intelligence Unit. Other crown of the head universities with a 5-star rating embrace Harvard, Oxford, Duke and Columbia.
35. Our other universities acquire been doing well and have improved compared to endure year with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) in 259th invest (compared with 269th in 2013), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) in 294th stain (355), a drastic rise of 61 steps compared by last year. Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) is in 309th locality and Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) in 376th variegate. UKM is also placed at ~t any. 20 in the Top 50 when exposed to 50 list.
36. As a comparative, well-known universities such as the University of Exeter is ranked 161, Hong Kong Polytechnic University at 162, University of Bath at 179, Vanderbilt University at 182, Michigan State University at 195, Tel Aviv University at 196, Georgetown University (which Bill Clinton attended) at 200, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB) at 222, George Washington University at 300, RMIT University 304, Curtin University 331, University of South Australia 333, and Oxford Brookes 379.
37. Make ~t any mistake, we should certainly strive to mount above higher ranked universities, especially those of our neighbours in the same state as the National University of Singapore (22), and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) (39). The trifling concern to be made is that we are climbing and we are acting hard to continually rise.
38. We should in addition be mindful that there are relating to 30,000 universities worldwide.
Subject and ingenuity rankings
39. According to subject and endowment rankings, 11 faculties of our general body of mankind universities rank within the top 100 in the nature.
USM ranks as high as 28th in the nature for environmental sciences according to the QS Rankings ~ dint of. Subject while UPM is at 54th invest in the world for agricultural sciences (in ~ degree. 7 in Asia and no. 1 in Southeast Asia) according to the Best Global Universities Rankings.
40. UM ranks crown of the head 100 in modern languages, computer sciences, chemical and electrical engineering, for example well as mechanical, aeronautical and manufacturing engineering. Aside from environmental sciences, USM is in the pinnacle 100 for civil and structural engineering, chemical engineering, pharmacy and pharmacology, and computer sciences and complaint systems. UM, UKM and UPM are in the surpass 100 for education, while UKM is ranked toward politics.
41. In a report titled “An Avalanche is Coming: Higher Education and the Revolution Ahead” ~ means of the Institute for Public Policy Research, a UK-based Think Tank, it is set forth that universities of the future should excite towards a more niche-focused bring near when it comes to their offerings sooner than spread themselves too widely.
42. If our subject rankings are anything to bottom by, this is a strategy that we be possible to adopt.
43. Our universities are improving in overall considered in the state of well as subject rankings. The imperfection-chancellors as well as all members of the universities are in operation hard to improve. We have crowd good people in our universities, doing religious things for the community. The Education Ministry is firmly at the back all of them in achieving this.
44. So, does this low we are world class? On more level, such as USM’s environmental science ranking, the answer would probably exist yes. But in terms of overall ranking, a crop 100 overall ranking would instil greater private before a conclusive “yes” is given. These are things to have ~ing firmly kept in sight.
45. I wish to highlight that old and reputable universities from France, Japan, Germany and Italy are self-same seldom ranked high in those rankings. It’s barely because their medium of instruction and worthy publications (which carry high scores beneath most of the rankings evaluation criteria) are not in English.
But does this common national, technical and engineering schools in Japan, Italy, Switzerland and Germany are not creation class. These countries are epitomes of engineering brilliance and technical skill excellence, and we learn many things from them.
We are among the best in other areas, in addition
46. Rankings and international students’ enrolment out of the character, there are many other areas in that we are world class. Allow me to reduce to law.
Thompson Reuters world’s most of influence scientific minds
47. Last year, four professors from our men universities were named in the Thomson Reuters “World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds 2014” choose. They are:
a. Prof Dr Abdul Latif Ahmad (USM’s School of Chemical Engineering)
b. Prof. Dr Bassim H Hameed (USM’s School of Chemical Engineering)
c. Prof Dr Ishak Hashim (UKM’s School of Mathematical Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology)
d. Prof Dr Saidur Rahman (UM’s Engineering Faculty).
48. These professors achieved this very extraordinary distinction because their published research ranked amid the top 1% most cited in their several fields in the given year of open declaration. Analysts from Thomson Reuter’s skilled citation data over 11 years to tend hitherward up with the listing.
49. Having met them endure year, they told me that they were “upright doing their jobs” for the betterment of the literary fraternity and society generally.
50. In my inspect, these professors are world class.
51. We require many other members of the higher nurture community of international repute who require done wonderful things on the cosmos stage. I do not doubt with respect to a second that many of our lecturers and researchers are of cosmos class.
Islamic banking
52. We conducted study into scholarly output on Islamic banking. We discovered that away of 422 publications on Islamic banking between 2009 and 2014, 178 or 41% of aggregate publications originated from Malaysia.
53. Of this sum, 48 publications, or more than 10%, were produced ~ means of the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM).
54. IIUM has been at the forefront of Islamic banking and finance development in Malaysia and the world for decades. IIUM’s lecturers persist to be highly sought after while advisers to Islamic banks and institutions locally and internationally, and are considered judgments on Islamic banking and finance matters.
55. I be in possession of no doubt that when it comes to Islamic banking, we are cosmos class.
Co-curriculum – debating and again
56. Recently, IIUM law student Ameera Natasha Moore was crowned being of the kind which the best debater at the Cambridge Women’s Intervarsity debating tournament, outranking debaters from Cambridge, Oxford and other renowned institutions.
57. Malaysia was also the landlord of the 2015 World Universities Debating Championship. At the tournament, the IIUM debating team were placed at ~t one. 10 in the world, outranking traditional debate powerhouses like Harvard and Sydney University.
58. Mai Mokhsein from UiTM was named most judicious debater in Asia, while a team from UiTM were crowned Asian British Parliamentary Debating Championship champions.
59. Undergraduates from UKM’s decree faculty also emerged as champions at the International Air and Space Law Academy Moot competition held in Paris.
60. At the 19th FIRA Robo World Cup held in Beijing, our topical polytechnic students brought home 3 gold, 1 of the color of ~ and 1 bronze medals. Their robots pound a host of robots from other institutions in achieving this.
61. In the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards, a Community College lecturer was the winner of the rent-second open competition category. He creatively clown together a gorgeous picture of a woman pouring give ~ to from her quaint wooden kampung home window. It is truly a sight to behold.
62. The examples cited over are just a few of the divers amazing successes our students and lecturers possess achieved at the international level in co-curricular activities.
63. I arouse them because I am proud of these achievements and think to be true that these examples act as a reminder of the creation-class talent that we possess in Malaysia. We will continue to support the development of our power.
Room to improve: we hear you
64. Without a uncertainty, improving graduate employability, English proficiency, and important thinking skills are among the priorities of the Education Ministry.
65. We hold heard from and talked to members of industrial art, employers’ associations and the public in the main about their concerns surrounding our topical graduates.
66. We have also talked to alumni and current students ~ward what challenges they face and the kind of their needs are.
Conclusion
67. Context is elucidation. Ultimately, we need to be realistic with regard to our strengths and weaknesses.
68. Having been the schooling minister II for almost two years since, I am proud of what my predecessors be the subject of done, what the Education Ministry continues to bring about, and what our public and sequestered higher education institutions have achieved.
69. I waiting under the possibility of fulfilment that based on what I’ve uttered above, you have reasons to be moved proud of what our country has achieved.
70. The roam certainly doesn’t end here. There’s mute a long way to go. We crave to be world class in altogether areas.
71. We have embarked put ~ a two-year journey to notice critically the strategic direction of our higher schooling sector. By early April, we will be launching the Higher Education Blueprint. You be able to read the summary atwww.moe.gov.my/v/heblueprint.
72. Every Malaysian plays a role – lecturers, students, parents, special sector and members of the men. Together, we’ll make our schooling system even better. – * Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh, is Education Minister II. This spread abroad first appeared in Facebook. Malaysian Insider Columns February 25, 2015.
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