SHAH ALAM: Three months into his tenure as Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) vice-chancellor, Professor Dr Mohd Azraai Kassim is setting his sights on providing the biggest university in Malaysia with a global outlook.
This, he said, could be done by sending UiTM students for study abroad programmes (student exchange programmes) called the “one student, one passport” initiative.
“We are looking into the possibility of the internationalisation of UiTM by launching the study abroad programme.
“With that, we hope to have overseas collaborations for students to learn at universities abroad, similar to a student exchange programme.
“Students at UiTM campuses in Johor could go to Singapore and those in universities in the north could collaborate with universities in Thailand.
“We hope students will gain experience and a fresh outlook by being in another country,” he said in an interview with the New Straits Times at the UiTM main campus here.
Azraai, who studied A Level and pursued his degree and post-graduate education in the United Kingdom, said he noticed that those who went abroad had two qualities — resourcefulness and the ability to adapt.
Another way to upgrade students is by helping them get internships abroad.
Azraai said only two per cent of the university’s graduates were hired to work abroad, and he would like to increase that number.
This, he said, could be achieved if Malaysian companies based abroad hired local graduates.
Azraai, who was appointed in February, said a short stint was among the four initiatives he introduced, which could transform UiTM into a high-performing university.
He, however, acknowledged that it would require having high-performing leaders, staff and students, as well as himself, visiting campuses to meet lecturers and staff.
“In the past, UiTM, formerly known as Institute Teknologi Mara, just focused on teaching. In 1999, it became a university, and was expected to do research and engagement.
“I have been highlighting the four characteristics of highly successful academicians: teaching excellence, strong research track record, international collaboration and leadership.
“On research and consultancy, I have been focusing on impactful outcomes and in my Amanat Tahun Baru (New Year mandate) at UiTM, the theme was
about making a contribution to society.
“We do not want our lecturers to do research just because they like to do it, but to do research that benefits society.”
He said he wanted them to collaborate with the industry and government agencies.
He also wanted the administrative staff to be professional and work with integrity.
“It is a mindset change. They need to become more professional, work faster and provide quality service and be customer service-minded.
“The customers are the students whom we have to give a lot of attention.”
On graduates reportedly not being proficient in English, which hindered their chances of securing jobs, Azraai said UiTM graduates had a strong command of the language, which enabled them to find jobs easily.
“In my previous job, we hired UiTM graduates who carried themselves well in interviews.”
He said 83 per cent of UiTM graduates had been working in the private sector and two per cent were working overseas.
The university is offering 14 2u1i (two years in university, one year in industry) programmes.
The programme boosts students’ learning experience based on industry knowledge combined with classroom learning.
There were also programmes that offered the same amount of study and internship-based learning so that students are prepared when they graduate.
On UiTM’s ranking, Azraai said it was useful in certain categories, such as boosting collaboration with other universities.
“I am not crazy about ranking. It is a third-party ranking, so it is useful for marketing and branding. For example, when other universities want to collaborate with us, they want to see how UiTM is ranked.
“Like it or not, it is important for us to take note whether we have improved.”