Transforming the landscape
IN the Malaysia Education Blueprint 20152025 (Higher Education), Shift #10 aims to transform higher education delivery.
According to the blueprint, the Malaysian higher education system needs to undergo comprehensive transformation if it is to rise to meet the nation’s ambitious vision and aspirations.
There have already been some successes. The blueprint mentions the establishment of international branch campuses and enhanced cross-border mobility of students.
Having the privilege of leading one of the international branch campuses in the country, I would certainly argue that our presence enhances the higher education landscape of Malaysia and we provide opportunities for student mobility that were not previously available.
One of the principles of being an international branch campus is that the degree is awarded by the home institution. In the case of Nottingham, if you studied at our Malaysia campus, you receive a degree from the University of Nottingham.
There is nothing on the degree certificate that says where you studied, as the degree you pursued forms part of the global offering of the university.
The fact that a degree is offered across the University of Nottingham enables easy student mobility as the degree is the same whether you studied at the campus in Malaysia, China or the United Kingdom.
The blueprint notes the importance of international students to Malaysia’s higher education sector.
International branch campuses, along with all other higher education providers in Malaysia, also recognise that international students contribute to the institutions’ income stream and diversity, which leads to a better student experience.
The University of Nottingham has recently been fortunate enough to be working with Laos. Panyathip International School (PIS), supported by the UK ambassador to Laos, recently asked us to establish an international branch campus in Laos.
We were reluctant to do this because, with Nottingham already having three international campuses, the move would add to the capital expenditure and require us to navigate yet another quality assurance framework.
However, PIS was keen to provide its students with an option to continue their studies in the country after completing secondary school. It felt as if we had reached a dead end.
Eventually, it was suggested that the University of Nottingham delivers its foundation programme in Laos, with the students then moving to Malaysia to pursue their undergraduate degree.
This idea was the catalyst to a Memorandum of Agreement that was signed at the Education World Forum in London last month.
University of Nottingham Malaysia and PIS now have a formal agreement enabling the university to deliver its foundation programme in Laos.
This will not only enable the students to study in Laos but also gain entry to the University of Nottingham’s undergraduate programmes in Malaysia, China or the UK. Students will enjoy an international experience after completing part of their studies in Laos.
The duration of the foundation programme is one year as opposed to two years for many other entry routes to an undergraduate programme. This speeds up their educational experience so they can enter the workforce a year earlier.
We will start delivering the foundation programme in September this year and hope to start welcoming Lao students from that programme to Malaysia in September 2019.
We are very excited about this initiative. It means that Nottingham is reaching out into Asean, which is something we are keen to repeat elsewhere as we see this as a win-win development for both Nottingham and our Asean partner.
It also captures the essence of Malaysia’s higher education blueprint by helping to transform the educational landscape and cementing the Higher Education Ministry’s “Soaring Upwards” tagline as it continues to be the leading education hub in the region.
Prof Graham Kendall is the chief executive officer, provost and pro-vice-chancellor of the University of Nottingham Malaysia. Twitter: @Graham_Kendall