I refer to the Malaysiakini article Avoid decline and fall of UM .

I hope the higher education ministry and the Institute of Higher Learning (IHL) are serious and are resolved to improve the education system in our universities.

In the fifty years of independence we have seen the rise and fall of the quality of education offered by local universities. The education system was geared to mass produce ‘graduates’ but failed to review their quality of graduates. Due to this oversight, we had to deal with the problem of a high unemployment rate among our graduates who lack marketable qualities for the current job market.

To further aggravate the problem, the policy-makers went on a spree to set up universities in every state and to make Malaysia a location for overseas students to further their studies. The local universities thus became appealing to students from lesser developed countries situated on the African continent, in the Middle East and the former Soviet Union.

This is based on our observation of the student mix at local universities. These students come here to seek a better education and at an affordable price. But besides paying extra for their courses as compared to local students, they are also subjected to hidden costs especially when buying food at cafeterias and for other services at the university.

These foreign students are actually charged double for food at cafeterias and in some universities, also for photocopying.

But the saddest part of all these unplanned and shortsighted arrangements is the inadequate facilities provided to students both local and foreign. I will cite universities like the Universiti Industri Selangor (Unisel), the Management and Science University (MSU), the Advanced Management & Technology (PTPL) Group of Colleges and even the Multimedia University where many people whom I know have studied or are studying.

Among the problems faced by students are:

Unethical distribution of National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) funds.

collection of fees are usually on time but universities’ facilities as promoted in their prospectus are not there (complaints even came to the National Consumer Complaints Centre).

Inadequate laboratory facilities. At MSU and Unisel only one student is able to carry out a practical while others are only able to watch.

Insufficient stock of necessary chemicals, cultures and apparatus. A shortage of other lab supplies is also part of this problem.

Safety and security of hostels. Many students at Unisel have complained their properties have been stolen. Once, during my visit to Unisel to visit my cousin, I noticed that many of the hostel room windows had no panes or grills. The LCD projectors and air-conditioning units in some of their lecture halls had been practically ripped from their mounts and stolen. Other structural problems include falling ceiling boards and sinking floors.

Above all, the lecturers or academic work force comprise a significant number of foreigners. The most ethical and morally responsible thing for a university and the National Accreditation Board (LAN) to do is to ensure academic staff have an excellent command of English. Students have so much problems comprehending the lecturers by both foreign and local lecturers who have a very poor command of the English language.

Inadequate competent academic staff is a critical problem in these universities. Some courses do not start until after half-a-semester is gone due to the lack of academic staff. Nevertheless, students still pay the full amount for their tuition or course fees.

I believe that instead of chasing higher rankings and superficial recognition, local universities should reflect on the problems brewing at their grassroots level. Their students are their customers and it is their obligation to provide the most conducive environment to produce complete scholars with skills and credentials critical to the current job market or business environment.

Many of the universities aspire to obtain ISO 9001 certification (or already do) but which customer do they seek to satisfy?

The writer is director, Malaysian Association of Standards Users.