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NEW STRAITS TIMESHIGHER ED

NEW STRAITS TIMESHIGHERED

COVER STORY

Promoting Education MalaysiaBYROZANASANIrsani@nst.com.my

STRATEGISEDand concerted efforts havebeen put in place to drive the mobilityagenda and it has gained momentum asan important product segment for educa-tion in the country. said Education MalaysiaGlobal Services [EMGS] chief operating of-ficer Novie Tajuddin.

As an entity tasked to promote the Edu-cation Malaysia brand. he said EMGS hasmade significant investments towards pro-moting student mobility programmes inthe Asia Pacific, Europe and America since2016.

'We have done this in collaboration withMalaysian institutions, both public andprivate through participation in leadingInternational Educators Conference andexhibitions such a's those organised by theAsia-Pacific Association for International

collaboration and other longer term aca-demic partnership.

"Foreign institutions see Malaysia as agood mobility programme parther due toour cultural diversity, recognised and qual-ity education system, biodiversity and her-itage," said Novie.

He added that Malaysia won the bid tohost Going Global 2018, which will takeplace in March in Kuala Lumpur, and APAIE2019, also in the capital city.

"This is a testimony to the Higher Edu-cation Ministry's commitment to the inter-:nationalisation agenda and mobility pro-grammes, specifically. More importantly, itis an acknowledgment by renowned globaleducators associations' of the nation'sleadership, commitment and efforts in in-ternationalisation ."

Education, Association of InternationalEducators [NAFSA - North America], Euro-pean Association for International Educa-tion and Going Global [Europe],' said Novie.

These events, which consist of bothconferences and exhibitions, draw between2,000 arid 4,000 participants from the high-er education industry at each venue.

"We showcase Malaysian institutionsat the exhibition and by having membersof academia from Malaysia present pa-pers and talk at the conference, we raisethe credibility of the Education Malaysiabrand."

At these platforms, Malaysian institu-tions. form collaborations with institutionsfrom all over the world towards formalis-ing student mobility or student exchangeprogrammes, academic mobility, research

MaBILITY programmes allowunder- and postgraduates toexperience short-term trainingabroad and gain an international

perspective to their programme of study.Australia, the United Kingdom and the

United States rank high as traditional desti-nations for such programmes amongst inter-national university students. Malaysia, too, isa popular country for foreign students on astudy stint.

In fact, in the Shape of Global Higher Edu-cation Report - British Council 2016, Malaysiaranks the first - alongside Germany - in.in-ternationalisation of higher education. .

Education Malaysia Global Ser-vices chief operating officer NovieTajuddin said: "Malaysian institu-tions have always hosted mobilitystudents from all over the world.In recent years, student mobilityhas been a priority of the HigherEducation Ministry to drive the in-ternationalisation agenda.

"Public rand private universi-ties including international branchcampuses are the main drivers forstudent mobility in the country.Foreign institutions see Malaysiaas a good mobility programmepartner due to our cultural diver-sity, recognised and quality educa-tion system, biodiversity and herit-age.

He added that many universi-ties in Malaysia, though not all, of-fer mobility programmes.

Monash University Malaysia,- Nottingham University Malaysia,Universiti Kuala Lumpur, Asia Pa-cific University, Taylor's University,

UCSI University and Multimedia University areamong the tertiar-y institutions which are mostactive in mobility programmes of betweenthree and 12 months, according to Novie.

"In the first six months of the year, Ma-laysia received more than 1,400 students forvarious mobility programmes with a durationof between three and 12 months. Many morestudents sign up for shorter mobility pro-grammes of between one and three weeks.These are typically cultural exchange pro-grammes and academic visits," he shared,adding that the majority of inward mobilitystudents are from Asia and Europe.

On the benefits of such programmes, Noviesaid for the inbound student, the opportunityto study in a campus abroad expands the stu-dent experience, improves knowledge and ex-perience of the Malaysia "Truly Asia" cultureas well as facilitates new friendships.

"For students in Malaysia, it's the knowl-edge-sharing and cultural exchange experi-ence. For the universities, inbound mobilitystudents add to the diversity of internationalstudents on campus .and raise the profile ofthe institution. The knowledge-sharing -which is more evident through research col-laboration - and cultural exchange betweenstudents are also beneficial to the institution.Mobility programmes support an institution'sinternationalisation objective, strengtheninter-university partnerships and raise the in-stitution's presence abroad."

UPMinternational

studentsgetting a taste

ofkampunglife during oneof the mobilityprogrammes,

that I decided to apply for a study exchangeprogramme. I'm interested to learn aboutculture and language, improve my Englishand learn new ways of working and studying ..

"I also hope to study non-engineeringsubjects such as marketing and Bahasa Ma--laysia, which I cannot pursue at my univer-sity. I also love to travel to discover Malaysiaand other Southeast Asia countries," he said.

Science degrees in chemistry are accred-ited by the Royal Society of Chemistry, UK.

International accreditation of UPM de-gree programmes provides an assuranceto international universities that their out-bound mobility students will enjoy a simi-larly high standard of education when theyspend a semester at UPM.

UPM is also involved in multi-partnermobility programmes such as Asean In-ternational Mobility for Students, AseanUniversity Network, Asian Association ofAgricultural Colleges and Universities,MEVLANA Exchange Programme Protocol[with several Turkish universities] and Eu-ropean Union mobility projects under ER-ASMUS+.

The European Union's Erasmus+ pro-gramme is a funding scheme to supportactivities in the fields of education, train-ing, youth and sport. With a duration from2014 to 2020, most programmes are a one-semester mobility programme.

"We have quite a good response to ourprogrammes from students, particularlyfrom Japan and China. More than half ofinbound mobility students come from non-partner universities, providing an indicationof our reputation with international univer-sities.

"Last year, UPM received students from40 countries, representing the continentsof Asia, Europe, Africa and North America.However, the top five countries sending mo-bility students were all from Asia - China,Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan and Thailand.These students formed almost 95 per centof our total inbound mobility students," saidZelina.

Cheng Ling Ling, 22, a student from Chi-na participating in a mobility programme atUPM's Faculty of Economics and Manage-ment, said being in Malaysia has enabledher to study more independently comparedto being in he'r home country. .

"Here, I need to independently preparefor group assignments and presentations. Ifind that I have the ability to solve problemsmyself and I have also gained confidence,"she said, adding that she chose UPM as atest to gauge how she would fare in a for-eign university as she has plans to pursuepostgraduate studies outside China.

Of her experience thus far, she finds thecourses as welt as the nature-friendly ac-tivities in rural areas interesting.

"The Consumer Behaviour module hascertainly made an impression. And as forculture, Muslim family life is very differentfrom the Chinese. I love the cultural diver-sity here."

INWARD MOBILITYPROGRAMME THEMES/AREAS1[1 e fitage&C Liltl.JrE~2. Science & Environment

3. Medicine'&?Ufe Sd~nces

4. Agriculture.

5. L~,nguage6. Art &. Design

7. Techn;logy & Engineering

8. Entrepreneurship

9. Travel & Hospit~lity

1Il.lslamic Finance

Nooie Tajuddin

Platform f .rshari gknowledge~experienCing culture

INTERNATIONAL ACCREDITATIONApart from being an approach to interna-tionalisation at home, mobility is also a driv-er for alignment and benchmarking againstinternational standards, in terms of deliveryof educational and student services, teach-ing standards and accreditation of coursesand degree programmes.

Associate Professor Dr Zelina Z. Ibrahim,director of Putra International Centre atUniversiti Putra Malaysia [UPMI, said: "Of-ten we assume that experiencing an inter-nationalised education means going abroadto study. But not all students have the re-sources to study overseas.

"Inbound mobility activities, especially aone-semester mobility activity, provide localstudents with the opportunity of interactingwith international students from differentsocia-cultural and educational background.The presence of only a few internationalstudents can affect the experience of manyin class.

"The activity forms one aspect of the flowof international knowledge and new ideasbetween countries." .

The latter is particularly important forsemester mobility programmes where. theinbound mobility student may transfer thecourse credits taken at their host universityto their home university.

At UPM;-for example, there are severalprogrammes which have been accreditedby international bodies. The degrees of theFaculty of Economics and Management areaccredited by the Association to AdvanceCollegiate School of Business, the world'slargest business education alliance.

The Faculty of Engineering degrees are'accredited by the International Engineer-ing Alliance; under the Washington Accordmulti-lateral agreement on accreditationor recognition of tertiary-level engineeringqualifications.

UPM's Bachelor of Science [Environmen-tal and Occupational Health] programme isaccredited by the United Kingdom CharteredInstitute of Environmental Health. EightBachelor of Education degrees are accred-ited by the United States Teacher EducationAccreditation Council. Three Bachelor of

,k. Source:Education Malaysia Global Services

INFOGRAPHICS NSTWinnieChee

and outbound mobility programmes.'IMU's School of Health Sciences dean

Professor Winnie Chee said: "Our inboundmobility programme for international stu-dents started with medicine and has sinceexpanded across all IMU programmes in-cluding dentistry, pharmacy and health sci-ences - which cover biomedical science aswell as nutrition and dietetics - and chiro-practic. Our mobility programmes are cus-tomised to the aim of the participating uni-versity abroad. This is to ensure the studentswill have a unique and beneficial experiencefrom cultural exchange to best practices inthe related field of study."

IMU mobility programmes include intern-ships, research, electives, study visits andclinical attachments.

"The response from international stu-dents has been encouraging. In r__ecentyears,we have students from countries such asCanada, China, Indonesia, Jl{lpan, Kazakh-stan, Saudi Arabia, Sweden and the UK. Thestudent mobility programme p'rovides par-ticipants with a myriad of benefits, irrespec-tive of whether the student is an outgoingor incoming mobility scholar. Overseas ex-posure as part of a degree programme canacademically and socially enrich a student'suniversity experience, broaden perspectivesand enhance employment prospects," addedChee.

Stuart Miles, a medical student from Uni-versity of Oxford, England, wlio did his at-tachment at IMW, recalls fondly of his timehere.

"OverIf weeks, I relished the chance toexperience medicine in a different countryand environment, and have enjoyed see-ing the similarities and variations in clinical

practice. I have thoroughly enjoyed my timehere, split between the obstetrics, gynaecol-ogy and paediatric departments as an elec-tive student at the IMU based at Hospital Tu-anku .Iaafar. Serernban," he said.

A group of 16 master's students from theKaraganda State Medical University, Kazakh-_stan recently completed a two-week courseon research management organised by IMU'sInstitute of Research, Development and Inno-vation.

One of them, an ultrasound diagnostictechnician who works at the Karaganda Hos-pital, said: 'The programme has been aneye-opener and has allowed me to improvemy knowledge in the application of and meth-odology for clinical research. I will definitelyapply what I've learnt in my future career."

He added that Malaysia's medical educa-tion system is similar to that of Kazakhstan."I was also curious to experience the diverseculture that Malaysia has to offer."

'We have a few inbound pro-qrarnrnes.that cater to both short-and lonq-terrn stints. For short-term, with a duration of less thantwo month's: there is the CulturalSummer ~Programme, IntensiveLearning Programme and In-tensive English Programme. Forlong-term programmes, whichcan vary from two months to one AA

year, we offer the Full Semester Ku Zilati KuExchange Programme, Internship- Shaariand Research Attachment Pro-gramme."

Initially participation came from mem-bers of GE3 [Global Engineering EducationExchange] 'and GE4 (Global' Education: Ex-changes for Engineers and Entrepreneurs],and from universities that UTP has memo-randa of understanding with via research ac-tivities - mostly from the US, France, Ger-many, Russia and Austria. "We are expandingour networking with Asian universities in Ja-pan, China, India, Indonesia and Brunei, aswell as Middle East universities such as KingSaud University and University Of Khartoum."

In general, Ku Zilati added, mobility pro-grammes benefit both foreign and local stu-.dents, as well as the institution.

"For foreign students, it provides themglobal experience which will increase theiradaptability. It also helps in increasingcross-cultural competency in internationalnetworking, and fosters independent thoughtand learning. Participating in mobility pro-grammes encourages individuals to step out-si-deof their comfort zone.

"For the institution, inbound' mobilityprogrammes help in increasin-g its visibilitywhich will improve university ranking even-

tually. Mobility programmes pro-,vide potential future networking,particularly with foreign academiaand industries; promote knowledgetransfer; and increase internation-alisation at home."

Dalton Buchanan, 19, an Ameri-can petroleum engineering ex-change student from MissouriUniversity of Science and Technol-ogy, said he gets "amazing teach-ing from the UTP lecturers" as wellas the chance to travel around the

country and region."I chose the programme because of UTP's

extremely high educational rating and itsbeautiful location. One of my favourite experi-ences so far was when I visited the ecoCareEnvironmental Education Center along KertihRiver in Terengganu. We planted mangrovetrees to help restabilise the biosystem and itwas such a fun educational experience! I alsojoined an activities class which taught survivalskills in the wild," he added.

"When I join the workplace, I'll have a leg-up because I now understand the diverse con-ditions of the world and know how to interactwith people from different cultures. In addi-tion, some Courses which I attend aren't of-fered 'anywhere else in the world."

Jeremy Cuny, 22, a mechanical eriqineer-ing exchange student from University Paris-Sud [IUT Cachan] in France, is spending twosemesters at UTP.

"At first, I came to UTP under an internshipprogramme between my university and UTPin April last year for 10weeks. Associate Pro-fessor Dr Ahmad Majdi Abdul Rani from the.mechanical engineering department was mysupervisor. I enjoyed this experience so much

The presenceof only a

few internationalstudents can affectthe experience ofmany in class.ZELINA Z.IBRAHIM,Putra International Centredirector

DIVERSE EXPERIENCEUniversiti Teknologi Petronas [UTP] startedits inbound mobility programme in 2010 withthe Student Exchange Programme, whereinternational students attend at least one se-mester at the university .:

Associate Professor Dr Ku Zilati KuShaari, UTP's head for Center for StudentInternship, Mobility and Adjunct Lecture-ship, said: "Later we diversified the inbo-undmobility programme to provide more optionsto more countries depending on their needsand interests. For example, students fromFrance are more interested to do their in-ternship in our research labs and studentsfrom Korea and Japan are keen to participatein our Summer Programme.

CUSTOMISED PROGRAMMESThe International Medical University (IMU] es-tablished its student mobility programme in2007 as part of its ASPIRE-Strategic Plan tobecome one of the leading private universitiesin Asia. Under the plan, it offers both inbound