August 20, 2011
www.nst.com.my
Transformational Universities (TUs) for Malaysia?
By Emeritus Professor Omar Abdul Rahman*
AT a 34th crowd of Universiti Putra Malaysia in Oct last year in my ucapan balas for a conferment of an emeritus professorship during a university, I had referred to a defined brand brand brand new purpose for a open universities in line with a significance upon inhabitant transformation, as great as that they be called transformational universities (TU).
What also stirred me to do so was a active sermon upon a becoming opposite purpose of universities between academics in a West.
During a talk in Kuala Lumpur in Jul 2007, Professor Tim Wilson of Hertfordshire University described his university as great as a few others in a United Kingdom as business-facing. They broach preparation by a commercial operation perspective. Courses have been designed with attention input. They adopt a revolving doorway proceed to business. They support entrepreneurship. They foster user-driven investigate as great as development. They give credits for commercial operation internship. They are, therefore, opposite from a comparison academic-facing UK universities such as Oxford as great as Cambridge. However, most universities right away have been a reduction of both.
Richard Levine, writing in a August 2006 emanate of Newsweek magazine, described a number of tellurian universities. They find students from around a world. They send their students abroad. They suggest courses that residence a challenges of an companion world. They undertake collaborative investigate programmes to benefit all humanity, he writes
The tip 5 tellurian universities were American. Cambridge as great as Oxford ! came in sixth as great as eighth respectively. Two Japanese as great as two Australian universities were in a tip 40. T! he only ASEAN deputy was a National University of Singapore (NUS), during 31st position.
Similar to a global-university judgment is a third era university (3GU). This was described by Professor J.G. Wissema of Delft University of Technology, Netherlands, in his 2009 book Towards a Third Generation University.
3GUs have been characterised by active competition globally for a most appropriate students, academics as great as investigate contracts, endeavour interdisciplinary investigate focusing upon tellurian issues, pursuing active R&D commercialisation as great as encouraging a growth of technostarters from between students as great as faculty.
Because of a significance trustworthy to commercialisation, they have an elaborate organisation as great as supervision structure. Massachusetts Institute of Technology as great as Cambridge have been between a 3GUs, whilst Institut Teknologi Bandung is an e.g. of a university in transition to a 3GU.
There was also an argument for UK universities to concentration more upon a local community. Professor John Goddard of Newcastle University had in 2009 called for reinventing a county university in a publication by a inhabitant genius for science, record as great as a arts.
What afterwards is a incident in Malaysia? UPM was modelled after a United States land-grant colleges whose functions were teaching, investigate as great as extension. Extension was a vital activity of UPM. Facilities for unsentimental aspects were extensive in sequence to offer great a subdivision a tillage community.
When UPM altered a name to Putra, a facilities were mostly distant as great as a prolongation u! se disco ntinued. UPM became only like any other Malaysian university. However, UPM is right away repositioning itself to lead again in a brand brand brand new agriculture, implying a duplicate of hi-tech as great as mo! dern male agement, high value-added agribusiness as great as sustainability.
Five Malaysian open institutions of higher guidance have been right away investigate universities, a single of that is a apex university. All have strengthened their infrastructure for science, record as great as innovation (STI) as great as their effort in research, growth as great as commercialisation (R,D&C).
They have been also office building a organisation as great as supervision structure for R,D&C in a demeanour of a 3GU described earlier, but with less tellurian engagement. Our investigate universities are, therefore, in a great in front of to minister directly to a inhabitant socio-economic transformation programme. This is a single vital attribute of a transformational university, a other being holistic tellurian collateral development.
Holistic tellurian collateral growth equates to a growth of a full tellurian intensity comprising a portfolio of opposite skills as great as resources compulsory by both supervision as great as industry. The judgment embraces egghead collateral (strategic suspicion process), ability collateral (technical competency), amicable collateral (inter-personal skill, communication, cooperativeness, intelligent partnership), entrepreneurial collateral (creativity, innovativeness, entrepreneurship, managerial), physiological collateral (commitment, passion, dedication, self-belief) as great as spiritual collateral that includes reliable values as great as integrity.
The holistic tellurian collateral components can be delivered either formally as partial of a courses or non-formally by a gainful campus environment. For example, elements of entrepreneurship as great as supervision can be incorporated as partial of a core of all courses.
The racial com! position of a students together with a presence of foreign students can be harnessed to raise a amicable as great as physiological capital.
Success in office building holistic tellurian collateral will produce higher knowledge workers. These have been people who can yield solutions to problems, working alone or in a team; have been versed with core competency; be rarely motivated, ada! ptable a nd retain a genius for life-long guidance to master brand brand brand new skills; as great as become risk-taking technostarter, with intelligent partnership work ethics.
The holistic tellurian collateral growth will emanate an innovative as great as beautiful workforce, critical for success in a innovation economy. Unfortunately, a charge of office building holistic tellurian collateral cannot be left to a university alone. It has to begin during home, by a school complement as great as eventually, during work. However, a TU does not have to wait. It can start conceptualizing programmes as great as emanate a ecosystem immediately.
A transformational purpose for a open universities implies a commitment to a inhabitant socio-economic transformation programme by two vital initiatives. First, a holistic tellurian collateral growth contributing to a creative, innovative as great as courteous workforce; second, an enhanced genius for value in STI as great as R,D&C contributing to genius office building as great as wealth creation.
Universities in a nation have been underneath vigour to change. The vigour from tellurian ranking is one. But there have been concerns also upon a disappearing quality of graduates as expressed by a attention village as great as a open during large. Its time to transform, to be transformational.
Tan Sri Omar Abdul Rahman is Senior Fellow as great as Founding President, Academy of Sciences Malaysia, He was formerly Science Advisor to a Prime Minister in a Mahathir Administration.
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