Soar upwards in a progressive environment

Malaysia is sought-after for quality education, low fees and easy-to-adapt student life

Education Malaysia, Dubai, is a regional body under the Ministry of Higher Education of Malaysia, which was set up to promote Malaysian education in the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia as well as the Indian subcontinent. The centre started operations in April 2004 in Dubai, and provides free services to students and parents to help them decide a career pathway of their choice.

Malaysia has 21 state universities and more than 480 private institutions, many of which are branch campuses of international institutions such as Monash & Swinburne Universities form Australia, and the Nottingham and Heriot Watt Universities from the U.K., to name a few.

Over the past 15 years, Malaysia has attracted a number of world-class universities to set up branch campuses. These universities offer undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes that are identical to their main campuses overseas. The affordable cost of quality tertiary education is one of the many reasons why international students choose Malaysia as their destination to pursue their studies. For example, you can acquire a U.K. engineering degree (four year duration) in Malaysia through a franchised degree programme at estimated RM100,000 ($25,000).

As per Education Malaysia, in 2016, there were 153,000 international students. Of these, more than 42,000 were from the MENA region, and there are more than 50 Emirati students studying in Malaysia.

The major draw of the Malaysian education system, as far as students from the UAE are concerned, are the relatively low fees and easily adaptable environment for students, in addition to the quality of education and availability of courses in Engineering, Medicine, Health Sciences, IT, Business, Islamic Banking and Finance, Psychology, etc., which are relevant to the UAE scene.

Another great reason to study in Malaysia is the relatively low cost of living. The capital Kuala Lumpur has been ranked one of the least expensive cities in the world to live in. Whether you choose to live on or off campus, you will find that it is possible to live comfortably within a budget of $5,000 per year. ‘Soaring Upwards’ is the tagline of Malaysia’s Ministry of Higher Education. It is used to portray the country’s higher education landscape that is progressively improving, while at the same time acknowledges that continuous efforts are needed to propel the nation’s higher education to the topmost level. The Ministry is also concentrating on awarding large amounts of research funding under its Fundamental Research Grant Scheme.

The Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) monitors the quality of all areas of the education system. It is the main quality assurance and accrediting body, and it has the responsibility of assuring the quality of both public and private higher education institutions in the country. This ensures students gain the skills they need and obtain qualifications that are relevant for their future career.