Gaining ground in education
I AGREE with Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh that we no longer need to send our students overseas because our higher education system now is also among the best in the world, “Students should pursue degrees locally” ( Sunday Star, April 23).
In the past, we sent students overseas for higher degree studies due to limited places in our local universities. The situation is different now as many public and private universities have been set up in the country for Malaysians as well as overseas students.
At present, there are over 150,000 foreign students in the country and the Government is targeting about 200,000. Having this number of international students means our higher education system is being recognised by many countries around the world. We are now a higher education provider rather than seeker.
The fruits of a good government policy, our scholars who were sent abroad to study in foreign universi- ties are now serving in our institutes of higher education as lecturers. This is in addition to foreign lecturers who are here as job seekers and are working in many local universities.
The combination of local and foreign experts in our universities has created a conducive environment for study and research which is a catalyst for good universities. This will further attract foreign students to come and enrich our higher education environment.
As a multi-cultural and multi-religious society, we are also providing a very good environment for international students to learn about tolerance, unity and harmony. Putting the tagline “Malaysia, Truly Asia” in the context of education, we are in a unique position to grow further as a hub for academic learning in the region.
By not sending our students overseas, we would be keeping good talents here in Malaysia. We are aware that students would have to conduct research as part of their studies especially for their masters and PhD. The outcome of those research would be new knowledge and ideas which can be translated into innovations and products that can be commercialised to help our country’s economy. If our students study in foreign universities, the intellectual properties (IP) of such research would be lost to our country. It may also slow down our march towards a developed society by 2050.
In addition, the money saved from keeping our students at home can be channelled back to our universities to be used to further improve their facilities for teaching, research and others. It could also provide our researchers with funding for more impactful and significant research.
The additional funds could be used to hire reputable foreign lecturers who can become mentors to our junior lecturers as well. This will further attract more international students, bringing more income to our country and also improve our international ranking.
Building reputable and worldclass institutions and universities will require a lot of funding, which can in part be raised from international students.
Therefore, it is timely for the Higher Education Ministry to rethink and refocus on the nation’s long-term goals and strategies in line with the aim of putting our universities in the top 100 of any world university rankings.
Nevertheless, the idea of not sending our students overseas should not be a blanket ruling. I personally think we still need to send our students to the very top universities around the world in fields that are not available in Malaysia. These students can come back and develop the new fields in Malaysia.