An Eduction System Worthy of Malaysia #55
Private Colleges and Universities
In a rare display of enlightenment the government amended its Education Act in 1996 to allow for private universities. To be truthful, the government was forced to do this because developments in the industry were fast overtaking the government’s ability to regulate it.
The government had always allowed private colleges to cater for students who finished Form 5 but were unable to enter Form 6. Private colleges like Taylor and Stamford prepare students for foreign matriculating examinations like the GCE “A” level. Indeed they offer superior programs, completing them in 12 to 18 months. Further, these colleges use English, a plus for those planning to go abroad.
Until 1996 no private entity could offer a degree. But as is often the case, private sector ingenuity easily overcomes the government’s prohibition by developing “twinning” programs with foreign universities where students would spend their first two years locally and then go abroad to the host university for the final two years. Later that was modified to a 3+1 program where they would take the first three years locally. You could see the trend developing where the students would complete their entire education in Malaysia and then go abroad merely to collect their degree, thus effectively circumventing the government’s prohibition.
The government had to amend the Act to prevent matters getting out of hand. Unfortunately as is typical of the government’s actions, it did so without much thought or scrutiny. Within the first two years it approved nearly 500 applications, about one on every working day! There was no way for the government, given its limited resources and expertise, to adequately monitor the applicants. All too often they were approved without there being firm plans for financing, no key academic personnel selected, and no agreement for a physical site. All that existed were glowing promises and even more grandiose plans. The results were predictable: medical schools approved without laboratories or professors, and universities that exist only on paper or in shopping malls and above shop lots. Such institutions will not lead the nation to educational excellence. Our students and nation deserve better. Malaysia did successfully attract the occasional quality institutions like Monash and the University of Nottingham. Thus far they are the exceptions.
Private Malaysian universities, even local branches of good foreign ones, have a long way to go before they could rightly be considered as truly a university in the traditional sense. Not only do they lack a formal campus and associated amenities, their academic offerings leave much to be desired. None of the private universities have a core of the liberal arts and sciences. Imagine having a university without such basic academic departments as English, history, philosophy, and the basic sciences. Most of the courses offered are the glorified business courses like management and other commercial subjects like accounting and the old standby, law. These subjects can be offered cheaply and from the commercial sense, most profitable. In the past these were the core offerings of correspondence schools.
Another popular course is IT. Every private institution on every corner is offering this. The reason? IT sells. Although these colleges and universities may have seemingly impressive IT courses, the contents leave much to be desired. So too are the quality and competence of the graduates. An IT executive for a major company advertised for software engineers. Out of a total of 122 applicants, mostly fresh graduates of local institutions, less than a handful were competent to perform the work required. Many companies still have to recruit expatriates because local graduates lack basic skills, their paper qualifications notwithstanding.
In a competitive academic environment like Singapore these private universities would not stand a chance. Thus while many view the presence of so many private universities in Malaysia as a reflection of academic vigor, to me it means just the opposite. It is a reflection just how bad local public institutions are such that a branch of a provincial British university looks good by comparison.
For models of successful private universities we should look to America. It is unique in that the majority of its elite universities and colleges are private. In the rest of the world private universities are rarely among the best.
Private American universities, like their public counterpart, receive significant governmental funding and tax subsidies, together with student loans and scholarships. In return these private institutions agree to certain public policies, like subscribing to the federal non-discrimination and affirmative action policies.
The prestigious private universities like Harvard are not private in the same mold as IBM or General Motors. They are nonprofit entities. Unlike private companies, they do not declare dividends or are concerned with profits in the commercial sense. The government, recognizing their nonprofit status and the socially beneficial value of their activities, exempts these institutions from taxes and regulatory burdens that apply to proprietary corporations.
There are private, for profit colleges and universities in America; few are good, and none among the elite. In planning for Malaysia’s private universities we should emulate the highly successful American nonprofit models, with modifications to suit local circumstances.
Like America, Malaysia should actively support private universities both directly and indirectly. Directly by giving grants; as precedent the government gave grants to foreign institutions for taking in Malaysian students. Indirectly the government could provide loan guarantees for capital expansion. Private lenders would underwrite such loans, the government merely acting as a guarantor, thus ensuring favorable interest rates. For the government, such loans should be safe, secured as they are by the universities’ assets.
The government could also exempt them from property and other taxes, and declare gifts to universities as tax deductible. Additionally it could provide scholarships and study loans for the students. In this way the universities could afford a “need blind” admission policy, just like American institutions.
The government provides tax relief and other subsidies to industries, why not to private universities? Like private industry, a university is also a major employer and potential foreign exchange earner through its admission of foreign students. Also like industry, a university would spawn many spin-offs. It is not accidental that Silicon Valley is near Stanford University and the University of California Berkeley. Similarly, the Research Triangle of North Carolina is surrounded by Duke and the University of North Carolina. A quality private university in Malaysia would also spawn similar commercial spin-offs.
In return for governmental support, the university could agree to some mutually beneficial guidelines. One would be for the university’s domestic student population to reflect the general society. This sensible policy would not only ensure greater diversity of student body but also prevent the university from becoming the exclusive enclave of a particular ethnic or social group.
Student diversity would have other benefits. What better way to prepare graduates for the global marketplace than to expose them to cultural and social diversities as undergraduates? Besides, in a plural society like Malaysia, it would be extremely unhealthy were local institutions to be segregated racially.
Harvard and Stanford are held in high esteem today in part because children of the rich and poor, whites and blacks, local and foreign can aspire for admission. Harvard could easily fill its slots with bright white kids from the private prep schools as it did before the1950’s, yet it aggressively recruits worldwide. Harvard today is much more highly regarded than in the past when it was the exclusive preserve of the White Anglo Saxon Protestant (WASP) crowd.
A student body that reflects society would also create a sense of cohesion and pride between the university and the community. In many Third World countries, the private universities are the first to be attacked by the citizens during an economic crisis because they view such institutions as havens for the rich and privileged.
Malaysia’s private institutions, even the excellent ones, are dangerously segregated not only racially but also linguistically and along socioeconomic class. The government could help alleviate this problem by providing study grants for Bumiputras to enroll, and rewarding those institutions that have a diverse student body.
I am terribly disappointed with the latest entry, University Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR). It fails utterly in attracting Bumiputras. Before UTAR can aspire to be a great university, it must first be a great Malaysian university, meaning it must attract all Malaysians. The luminaries on UTAR‘s Board of Trustees have impressive degrees from prestigious Western universities, but scratch a bit and the trustees’ clannishness oozes out. I would have thought that UTAR‘s trustees would have emulated their great alma maters by having a more inclusive board. Can they not find some capable non-Chinese? I do not suggest that having few Malays on the board would automatically solve the problem. Many private institutions go out of their way to employ prominent Malays to be on their board, yet those institutions still do not succeed in attracting Malay students. At least then you could not fault the owners, they have tried and made an effort.
The blame goes directly to those seemingly distinguished Malay directors. They (their impressive degrees and titles notwithstanding) are content merely in drawing their director’s pay. They do not help guide their colleges to be more attractive to Malays. If those directors would visit the residential schools and actively recruit those students, these colleges may well attract more Malays. Not to mention that those directors would then actually earn their keep. Those Malay directors come in handy only when it is time to renew the institution’s operating permit. Shame on them! It is sad that these highly educated Malays are behaving just like the typical Ali of Ali Baba partnerships. It proves my point: it is easy to get a PhD; more difficult to eradicate the Ali Baba mentality.
There are other sensible rules that both the university and the government could agree to that would enhance the quality of private institutions.
One would be to make a year of Malay Studies compulsory. It would be absurd for one to earn a degree from a Japanese university and yet not speak a word of Japanese. Elite American universities have core curriculum of American history and Western civilization. The American University in Paris as well as the one in Cairo and Beirut use English as the medium of instruction. Yet all students have to take a year of French or Arabic as the case may be.
Our government should rightly insist on certain safeguards. Thus foreign governments or their agencies should not be allowed to set up a university. Because of the particular social and political sensitivity, the same prohibition should also apply to religious bodies.
We should encourage private universities to attract foreign students. Besides contributing valuable foreign exchange, these students would serve as a barometer for the quality of the institution. They would also enhance the educational experiences of all students.
We have to be careful that these student visas are not abused and used as a means for Third World residents to enter Malaysia to work.
My suspicion is that many of the visas issued to Chinese and African students are diverted for these illicit purposes. The current daily headlines merely affirm my suspicion. The only way to prevent this is to make sure that these visas are issued only to bona fide students as attested by their having qualifications acceptable to Malaysia. Additionally these students must post performance bonds or somehow demonstrate their ability to finance their study. Malaysia can learn much from Britain and Australia on how to monitor foreign students effectively.
We can extend my earlier concept of charter schools to universities to create joint public/private sector joint ventures. The government could give grants to these charter universities for every Malaysian student they enroll. The amount would be equivalent to what it would cost the government to educate these students at a public university. In return for governmental support, these charter universities should agree to have their domestic student population reflect the greater Malaysian society.
With proper planning and appropriate support, Malaysia too can have fine private universities that are worthy of our pride.
Malaysia has passed the stage of most Third World countries in that it has successfully taken care of the basic need of providing primary and secondary education. To launch into the next trajectory of development, Malaysia must now enhance its tertiary institutions, to make them on par with the developed world. There is no longer a “local standard” for knowledge in a globalized world.
Next: Chapter 9: Mow Down MOE