LETTER | “Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one. “ Malcolm Forbes.

One wonders if it is a tragedy or a miracle that the country’s supposedly premier academic institution can produce an outspoken individual such as Wong Yan Ke, who is not afraid to voice his dissenting views and accept public scrutiny, when it is helmed by a vice-chancellor who chose to hide in his ivory tower and avoid engaging in an intellectual debate with his young adversary.

To all the university’s academics who organised and took part in the recent Malay Dignity Congress (MDC), here are some hard facts for you to digest first about the harsh realities that your graduates will face once they leave your institutions.

Starting salaries for fresh graduates has been falling since 2010, according to Bank Negara Malaysia. From those armed with a diploma to a master’s degree, real income has fallen between 6-7 percent between 2010 to 2018. 

That is for those lucky enough to secure jobs. Youth unemployment stands at 10.9 percent, triple the national average. One out of four graduates that will leave your institutions will not be able to secure a job – a large chunk of their cohorts will remain jobless for at least six months to a year.

To add insult to injury, the mean incomes of those who seek a job stand at RM1,846, which is not even two times that of the national minimum wage.  Graduates, contrary to employers’ complaints that they were asking too much, were actually asking for too little, by accepting pay that does not commensurate with their academic qualifications.

It is no wonder that most graduates end up unable to pay back their student loans, as either, they could not find a job, or if they are fortunate to find one, their starting salaries are just too low.

So “esteemed” professors, your track record is not exactly stellar. You are not doing a good job preparing the next generation for the real world. Our graduates have to suffer the indignity of being jobless for half a year or more after leaving your doors with huge debts they can’t settle; accept a salary that does not measure up to their years of "learning" at your institutions; and being told by employers that they do not possess the right skills after placing their trust in your hands. Their plight has become a national embarrassment and tragedy that the government has to step in to subsidise employers to hire them.

These former students of yours ought to be given the opportunity to voice their grievances to you. Of course, you will take centre-stage to defend yourselves. A “Graduates Who Are Jobless Dignity Congress” (GWAJDC) should be held so you can come face-to-face with your scholars and engage in an intellectual discussion of what your distinguished panel of professors are doing to resolve this national crisis. Or would you choose to blame these ails on the government and the economy, or a certain segment of the Malaysian society?

An open mind and character are what our education system is supposed to embed in our youth, our future leaders. Yet I see little hope in our education system when those whom we entrust to nurture our young in the country’s highest learning institutions seemed to possess little of both. Gosh, for the sake of our next generation, I hope I am wrong.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.