Rating system to be extended

Friday October 24, 2008

The Rating System for Malaysian Higher EducationInstitutions (Setara) will be extended to private higher educationinstitutions by next year.Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said thiswould provide an overview of where public and private universitiesrank in the national education system."This will provide the baseline data from which these institutionswill seek to improve and ensure the continuous drive towardsexcellence is achieved in our national higher education framework," hesaid at a ceremony to unveil UCSI University, formerly known asUniversity College Sedaya International, last night.Bold symbol: Mohamed Khaled (centre) launching UCSI University's coatof arms Thursday night. Looking on are Ng (right) and chancellor TanSri Dr Abdul Rahman Arshad.Mohamed Khaled said the first step towards achieving a competitivedrive in the higher education system was to enable universities, bothprivate and public, to be reviewed and evaluated as equalcounterparts.On awarding university status to UCSI, Mohamed Khaled said this wasbecause it had fulfilled the criteria."These include qualified teaching staff, meeting the prescribed numberof academic staff with PhD and masters' research capabilities, goodgovernance, availability of excellent teaching and learning facilitiesand good student accommodation," he said."This is indeed a milestone achievement for UCSI and a well-deservedsymbol of excellence after 22 years of dedication in the field ofhigher education," he said.UCSI University group president and vice-chancellor Peter Ng said hewas proud that the university had transformed from a computer trainingcentre with just two computers to four campuses in four states in over20 years."We will soon offer hospitality and tourism courses at our Sarawakcampus and petroleum and gas courses at our Terengganu campus," hesaid.The eventual objective was to create niche specialisations at itsbranch campuses, he said, adding that it would soon offer doctorateprogrammes

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