UNIMAS Emphasises Research With Societal, Industrial Impact

By Zaphne Philip

KUCHING, July 30 (Bernama) -- As a public institution of higher learning, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) always emphasises research that can have an impact on society and industry, in line with the five main focuses of the Ministry of Higher Education (KPT).

The five focuses are preparing the country's best talent; strengthening the research and innovation ecosystem; implementing a new approach to the transfer and sharing of knowledge programmes; internationalisation of higher education; and strengthening the enabling ecosystem.

UNIMAS vice-chancellor, Prof Dr Ahmad Hata Rasit said UNIMAS is committed to nurturing the best talent among the children of Sarawak, who are capable of making a significant impact on Malaysia. 

"Talent preparation is at the core of establishing public universities in Malaysia. To support this, UNIMAS emphasises the concept of lifelong learning, which is popular among working individuals who wish to enhance their expertise in their current field or explore new areas of interest," he told Bernama

Ahmad Hata said through these new approaches such as micro-credentials and Open Distance Learning, working individuals can further their studies.

"This method (of learning) is more flexible, meaning students do not study on a full-time basis, but they follow the modules and courses at their own pace and over time will be stackable and can be accumulated for the students to get their Diploma, Bachelor's Degree, Master's Degree and Doctor of Philosophy.

"For those working and with families, their commitment is high, but through micro-credentials, students can focus on one model only and only pay for that. There is no need for them to pay fees for one semester," he said.

He said flexible learning is suitable for the new generation or Generation Z.

On the internationalisation of higher education, Ahmad Hata said that UNIMAS had been making strides in expanding its collaboration network with foreign institutions.

“In May this year, UNIMAS signed four Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) and two Memorandums of Agreement (MoA) with four leading universities in Uzbekistan which were witnessed by Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim," he said.

UNIMAS, he said, is also always aware of the need to improve its reputation and position at the global level.

"This year, UNIMAS was ranked among the 300 young universities globally, based on the Times Higher Education Young University Ranking 2024 and is the eighth best university in Malaysia.

"Compared to last year, UNIMAS is in the ranking range of between 401 to 500, it turns out that UNIMAS's efforts in improving the quality of education and research have a very effective impact on improving UNIMAS's position," he said

-- BERNAMA