Xiamen University to Open Branch Campus in Malaysia

The first ever university branch campus backed by the Chinese State is to be established in Malaysia. Xiamen University, a top 20 higher education institution in China, plans to open a five-faculty campus with first batch of student intake in September 2015.

 
Read full story below.



SEPANG, July 3 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak hopes the establishment of Xiamen University Malaysia Campus (XMUMC) here would help Malaysia become a hub for world-class education.

He said Malaysia, which ranked 11th in Unesco’s list of preferred educational destinations, was committed to improving the ranking.

He added that Malaysia was also committed to developing home-grown workforce of individuals capable of generating big new ideas and game-changing strategies that would create wealth and jobs for the people.

“In order to achieve both these goals, Malaysia must improve the range and quality of its tertiary education. Xiamen University’s new campus helps us to do this,” he said at the ground-breaking ceremony for XMUMC in Salak Tinggi, here, today.

Also present were Second Education Minister Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, the prime minister’s special envoy to China, Tan Sri Ong Ka Ting, who is also the Malaysia-China Business Council chairman, president of Xiamen University Prof Zhu Chongshi and China’s ambassador to Malaysia Huang Huikang.

Estimated to cost RM1.3 billion, XMUMC which is built on a 60-hectare site with five academic buildings, six students’ residences, activity centres, sports facilities and a cafeteria, is expected to be ready in September next year.

XMUMC is to see its first enrolment of 500 students after that and the number to grow to 5,000 in 2020, and eventually reach its maximum capacity of 10,000 students from China, Malaysia and other Asean countries.

Najib said it was fitting that Xiamen University had chosen Malaysia as the venue for its first international campus.

Xiamen University ground-breaking ceremony

He said the setting up of Xiamen here, which was prestigious as it was an internationally recognised university, would attract high-quality students from abroad as well as provide more choices for Malaysian students.

“Not everyone can study abroad, but now Malaysian students will be able to undertake global education at a reasonable cost, right here in Malaysia,” he said.

Najib said the ground-breaking ceremony today was symbolic of the friendship between Malaysia and China.

Meanwhile, Liow who is also MCA president, welcomed the establishment of XMUMC here as it was another milestone for Malaysia and China in strengthening bilateral ties and also people-to-people relations.

“The setting up of the Xiamen University branch campus here will help to turn Malaysia into a hub for excellent education in the region.

“MCA is committed to attracting more Chinese students to study in Malaysia,” he said.

Xiamen University, listed as among the top 20 academic institutions in China, was founded by Malaysian rubber magnate Tan Kah Kee in 1921.

Last year, Xiamen University received an official invitation from the Malaysian government to set up a campus in Malaysia and in February the same year, an agreement of cooperation on the setting up of XMUMC was sealed between XMU and Sunsuria Development Sdn Bhd.

XMUMC will offer undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral courses adhering to the same educational philosophy and degree-awarding system adopted by
Xiamen University. Graduates of XMUMC will be granted academic degrees from Xiamen University.

XMUMC will be constructed in two phases. In the first phase, five schools will be set up, namely the School of Information Science and Technology, School of Ocean and Environment, School of Economics and Management, School of Chinese Language and Culture, and School of Medicine.

In the second phase, more schools and courses will be set up to meet the social needs and market demands.

-BERNAMA

Why Do Indians Study Abroad?

The predicament faced by Malaysian Students is quite similar with Indian students. The different is Malaysian students tend to enroll with local private universities. This has resulted with the mushrooming of private universities and colleges in particular private medical colleges in view of lucrative profit.

Here is the full story "Why Do Indians Study Abroad?




By Pushkar | Academia
March 22, 2013

Why do thousands of Indian students head abroad each year for a university degree? Dr. Pushkar discusses.

AsianScientist (Mar. 22, 2013) – Arindom Datta is an old friend I have kept in touch with since college. After graduating from Delhi’s St. Stephen’s College, he took a degree from a leading Indian business school and currently works with a multinational bank in New Delhi.

When I met Arindom soon after my return to India in July 2012, he was a worried parent. His son Reuben was finishing school in 2013. Arindom was concerned that it would be tough for his son to get admitted to one of the better colleges in the National Capital Region (NCR).

“Reuben is a good student. That’s not the problem. But even with 90 plus percent, forget Stephen’s, kids end up at obscure colleges where they still don’t get to study what they want to study,” he explained. “Most of these places, public or private, kuch pata nahin kaise hain (one does not know if they are good).”

Colleges in the NCR count among the best in the country and attract thousands of young Indians each year far and near. However, despite increasing student intake over the years, they have to turn away large numbers of hopefuls. Many are unable to get admitted in disciplines of their choice.

India’s colleges require students to choose their discipline when they apply for admission (though that will no longer be the case at Delhi University’s colleges from this year). Entry marks for popular disciplines like economics or physics in the best colleges – Lady Shri Ram College for Women (LSR) or St. Stephen’s – are in the high 90s. Depending on their marks, many compromise on the discipline and opt for less popular disciplines in order to study at a better college.

“What does Reuben want to study?” I asked.

“Economics and music. He is a guitarist, plays with a band, and he is also a good tennis player. He is applying to several American schools but they are too damn expensive. Everything depends on funding. What about Canada?” he asked.

I suggested some Canadian universities and we went on to talk about other things.

I called Arindom recently after I moved to Goa earlier this month to take up a faculty position at the Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS) Pilani-K. K. Birla Campus.

“Fantastic news! Reuben has secured admission and 80 percent funding at a good American school in the Boston area. I can afford the rest. We are waiting for news from a few others. Thank God!” he reported.

Reuben will be one of the thousands of students heading to the United States this fall. The Times of India reported that 5,600 student visas were issued in India between October 2012 and February 2013, a 50 percent increase from last year.

More than 100,000 Indian students are registered at American universities, next only to students from China.

Why do thousands of Indians like Reuben head abroad each year?

For India’s young women and men, there are four main options when they finish school.

First, if they are incredibly hard working, bright, and lucky, they finish with exceptionally high marks and get to attend a college of their choice in the discipline they want to. An absurdly low number of students succeed because the competition is frightening. For example, in 2011, the Shri Ram College of Commerce in Delhi made headlines when it announced a first cut-off of 100 percent for non-commerce (science) students opting for a bachelor’s degree in commerce (honors).

Second, if students want to pursue an engineering or medical degree, they must crack the highly-competitive exams for the best engineering schools like the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and BITS. In 2012, more than 500,000 students competed for about 10,000 seats at the 15 IITs.

The odds of getting admitted into one of the three BITS Pilani branches – at Pilani, Hyderabad, and Goa (a fourth is in Dubai) – are equally staggering.

When students fail to get into these or a few other comparable schools, they have to settle for less. There is a wide gulf between the best and the rest of engineering and medical schools so that for many students, the ‘thirteenth option’ is hardly an option at all.

Third, students can choose to attend private institutions. However, these are far more expensive than public colleges and most parents I have spoken with are wary about the quality of education there. While there are a few newer credible private institutions, they cannot meet the high demand. Still, many students have nowhere to go and end up at one of the lesser private universities.

Finally, for many students, the option is to head West or East. When I attended St. Stephen’s in the mid-1980s, nearly all West-bound students headed for graduate schools in the U.K. (usually through scholarships like Rhodes or Inlaks) or the U.S. (almost always to the school which offered full or nearly 100 percent funding). I cannot recall any of my contemporaries who went to either Australia or Singapore. A very small number – mostly the affluent – went abroad for undergraduate degrees.

Now, the student traffic to the East has grown considerably. Other than Australia, Singapore has also emerged as a good option, both due to the quality of its universities and proximity to India. And more Indians go abroad for undergraduate degrees.

My cousin Shalini Prasad recently re-located to Delhi from Ahmedabad because her kids were growing up. Educated in Delhi herself, she was clear about the move.

“Delhi has the best schools and colleges. You can’t be anywhere else.”

While it will be another two years before her two kids attend college, we have more than once discussed the possibility that, unless the Indian government rises up to the challenge of increasing the number of good quality colleges or at least regulates private universities appropriately, they too may have to head East or West.

Pushkar is a faculty member at the Department of Humanities and Management at the Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS Pilani)-Goa. He has a PhD in political science (McGill University) and previously taught at the University of Goa, Concordia University, McGill University, and the University of Ottawa.

Copyright: Asian Scientist Magazine; Photo: Rajesh_India/Flickr/CC.

Disclaimer: This article does not necessarily reflect the views of Asian Scientist or its staff.

Source - Asian Sientist.com

Top 10 Most Employable Majors in China - will it also influences the world job market trend?

Will the top ten of most employable majors in China also influence and set the trend for job market around the world? 

The issues of global environment problems, climate change, natural hazards, safety issues, health care and epidemic diseases, food and water shortage and etc are the concerns of all living beings in this century. 

And looking from the angle of  rapidly growing world populations, we need lot more of these professions to predict, avoid and find solutions to any potential disaster either natural or human made in order to provide everyone of us a better living place. 

We need these professionals to preserve and conserve natural resources and restore the damages done to the environments to ensure the sustainability of living beings on earth. Heal the world is what we want! 

It make sense, isn't it!

Here is the report:

For students who are graduating, finding a suitable and well-paid job is undoubtedly the number one priority this summer, while some students may not have to worry so much about job opportunities thanks to their choice of major.

According to the 2014 Chinese College Graduates Employment Report, students who majored in architecture, safety engineering or geological engineering have higher rates of employment than students of other subjects.

The study, carried out by the educational assessment institution MyCOS, found that the average employment rate for college graduates in 2013 has risen by 0.3percent, to 91.8 percent. Average monthly incomes have increased by 202 yuan or 6 percent from the previous year, amounting to an average total of 3,250 yuan(US$520) for college students who graduated last year.

The ten majors with the highest rates of employment are listed below:

Architecture (建筑学)

Employment rate in 2014 (6 months after graduation):98.3%

Employment rate in 2013 (6 months after graduation):94.7%


Safety engineering (安全工程)



Employment rate in 2014 (6 months after graduation):96.9%

Employment rate in 2013 (6 months after graduation):94.8%


Geological engineering (地质工程)


　　
Employment rate in 2014 (6 months after graduation):96.7%

Employment rate in 2013 (6 months after graduation):N/A


Mechatronics engineering (机械电子工程)


　　
Employment rate in 2014 (6 months after graduation):96.6%

Employment rate in 2013 (6 months after graduation):95.7%



Nursing (护理学)


　　
Employment rate in 2014 (6 months after graduation):96.1%

Employment rate in 2013 (6 months after graduation):94.2%


Water supply and drainage engineering (给水排水工程)



Employment rate in 2014 (6 months after graduation):95.9%

Employment rate in 2013 (6 months after graduation):97.5%


Geographical information systems (地理信息系统)



Employment rate in 2014 (6 months after graduation):95.6%

Employment rate in 2013 (6 months after graduation):95.5%


Engineering management (工程管理)



Employment rate in 2014 (6 months after graduation):95.3%

Employment rate in 2013 (6 months after graduation):93.4%


Mineral processing engineering (矿物加工工程)



Employment rate in 2014 (6 months after graduation):95.0%

Employment rate in 2013 (6 months after graduation):94.0%


Information management and information systems (信息管理与信息系统)



Employment rate in 2014 (6 months after graduation):94.9%

Employment rate in 2013 (6 months after graduation):N/A


Source - english.people.com.cn

Explore The Mystery of Food Culture in China - "A Bite of China - Inspiration of Transformation (EP 3)"

A Bite of China is a 2012 Chinese documentary television series on the history of food, eating, and cooking in China directed by Chen Xiaoqing (陈晓卿) and narrated by Li Lihong (李立宏). It first appeared at the China Central Television in May 14th, 2012, and quickly gained much popularity.Having started filming in March 2011, this seven-episode documentary series introduces the history and story behind foods of various kinds in more than 60 locations all around China.The documentary has also been actively encouraged as a means of introducing Chinese food culture to those unfamiliar with local cuisine.

Episode 3: Inspiration of Transformation

It is the nature of human behavior to explore and seek new things, new methods and new process to fine tune and improve their daily livelihood. The power of imagination of human mind and the process of evolution leading up to the appearance of modern humans.  And human inspiration stem from the desire and aspiration to improve and transform things to next level of perfection. 

In this episode, see how Chinese people transform its food culture stem from the good understanding of foods, imagination and inspiration for a change. A change for a better cooking techniques, better taste and better nutritious. A change from a simple staple food to wide variety foods while preserving the spirit and traditions of Chinese food culture.

Next episode - "A Bite of China - The Taste of Time"

Explore The Mystery of Food Culture in China - "A Bite of China - The Story of Staple Foods (EP 2)"

A Bite of China is a 2012 Chinese documentary television series on the history of food, eating, and cooking in China directed by Chen Xiaoqing (陈晓卿) and narrated by Li Lihong (李立宏). It first appeared at the China Central Television in May 14th, 2012, and quickly gained much popularity.Having started filming in March 2011, this seven-episode documentary series introduces the history and story behind foods of various kinds in more than 60 locations all around China.The documentary has also been actively encouraged as a means of introducing Chinese food culture to those unfamiliar with local cuisine.

Episode 2: The Story of Staple Foods

Staple foods vary from place to place, country to country and region to region. China a country with a vast land size and huge population that consists of 56 ethic groups is certainly a country for exploration of its cultures and heritages, its people, foods and many more.

For the Chinese people, rice is the staple food in everyday meals. However with 56 ethic groups living across China, the are plenty type of staple foods for exploration from these ethic groups. Watch it and see how Chinese people make used of the natural resources available to them, evolved and turned it into a daily delicacy and also make a living out of it.

Next episode - "A Bite of China - Inspiration of Transformation (EP 3)" 

Explore The Mystery of Food Culture in China - "A Bite Of China - Nature's Gift (EP 1)"

A Bite of China is a 2012 Chinese documentary television series on the history of food, eating, and cooking in China directed by Chen Xiaoqing (陈晓卿) and narrated by Li Lihong (李立宏). It first appeared at the China Central Television in May 14th, 2012, and quickly gained much popularity.Having started filming in March 2011, this seven-episode documentary series introduces the history and story behind foods of various kinds in more than 60 locations all around China.The documentary has also been actively encouraged as a means of introducing Chinese food culture to those unfamiliar with local cuisine.

Episode 1: Nature's Gift
Nature's gift or more precise refer as resources if we relate it to this documentary. Resources are the greatest gift from God to human. It is the gift from the mother earth to sustain the population of human beings and all species in this planet. Among these resources, water and foods are the most precious resources in this planet. As such, preservation, conservation and sustainability of these two resources is utmost importance for human survival. 

I will post this seven-episode series on my blog and hope all enjoy and most important learn some great knowledge, survival skills, living skills, cooking skills and etc from this documentary.

And not forget to appreciate and be grateful of what we have.

The show starts now....

Next episode - "A Bite of China - The Story of Staple Foods"

Student Loan - borrow or not?

Students are in dilemma whether to borrow money to finance the cost of their studies especially in the field of medicine where the cost of tuition fees is in the region of RM300,000 to RM1.0m in Malaysia. Please refer below table for tuition fees charged by local private universities in Malaysia.

                                                                                                                                                        

For an average income family, this is a big sum and beyond affordability. If borrowing is needed to finance the cost of study, then parents and students should weight the available options and give a serious thought before committing a debt that might not guarantee a good return upon graduation.

In Malaysia if we evaluate the viability of medical studies purely based on cost/benefit, then pursuing a medical degree is no longer glamorous. It burnt pockets and bankrupt families. Please click the below link and read the story of a young Malaysian who had an ambition to be a medical doctor since the age of 10.
Link - Medical Degree: A Dream or Nightmare?

The above scenario is not just happened in Malaysia. It is a fact and common trend now that students and parents in many countries around the world facing the same predicament. What make them borrow loan to finance their studies?

The answer is simple - the tuition fees is damn too high. This mainly contributed by the flourishing of private universities and colleges with the ultimate aim of making huge profit out of it. These profit orientated private institutions have to be blamed for the exorbitant tuition fees imposed on students.

The government of the day in many countries around the world also to be held responsible for high tuition fees as they got their priority wrong in serving the people who voted them in. They are in favor of privatization of higher education instead of allocate more budget, resources and spending more tax payers money to finance the basic need of its people in "education". With the support from government, these greedy profit oriented higher learning institutions set to take advantage of the situation and charged high tuition fees to satisfy their greed. So the main beneficiaries are the private higher education institutions and also the banks where high interest rate is imposed on student loan. 

Next, the management of these private institutions will also demand a high paycheck for their roles in running the day to day operations. This further exacerbated the spike of tuition fees to cover the high cost of management, marketing, promotion and advertisement and this chain effect will eventually burden students at large. It was reported recently in UK that universities have to raise tuition fees in order to cover the operational cost. Read full report here - Degrees in greed: University chief picked up GBP1m over 4 years.  

In many countries, the huge spike of tuition fees has outpacing many of the basic price indexes like housing, consumer inflation, healthcare and etc. In 2010, the total outstanding amount of student loan had overtook total credit card debts and car loans for the first time in US history.


In US, nearly $1 trillion in student loan debts are outstanding and millions in unpaid loans owned by American students. And student loans are growing each day. Lawmakers in US are worried how student loans could affect its economy in future if it is not contained to an acceptable level.

Click the below link and read the numbers behind how Americans are struggling to pay for college due to spike in tuition fees in the last decade. Link - Student Loan- Debt Charts.

Many countries are following the US's foot steps and Malaysia is no exception and  is heading towards and mirroring the US ways where student loans are getting out of hand as many students in Malaysia get loan to finance their studies in view of high tuition fees imposed by private universities. With the support and incentive (by way of subsidizing the interest rate) provided by the government, many local banks in Malaysia also jump into the bandwagon by offering student loans in order to widen their income base. Please click below links and read full story: 

1. 50,000 Students Might Miss PTPTN Loans This Year. 
2. 3 Loans You Could Get From Banks to-Further Your Studies.

Do we really need to borrow money for education? Do we have a choice? What are the options available?

The answer is "Yes" and there is always a solution to a problem. You can either borrow less or don't even resort to borrowing to finance your studies if you weight your options well. Don't just limit your choices by looking only to study at local universities. You must also evaluate the opportunities offered by overseas universities. Please look at the table below and ask yourself which countries that provide a low and affordable tuition fee for further education. 

Annual cost of studying abroad for international students in US$ per year

Country	Annual Fees	Annual Cost of living	Annual Total
Australia	$25,375	$13,140	$38,516
United States	$25,226	$10,479	$35,705
United Kingdom	$19,291	$11,034	$30,325
United Arab Emirates	$21,371	$6,004	$27,375
Canada	$18,474	$7,537	$26,011
Singapore	$14,885	$9,363	$24,248
Hong Kong	$13,182	$9,261	$22,443
Japan	$6,522	$12,642	$19,164
Russia	$3,131	$6,310	$9,441
China	$3,983	$4,783	$8,766
Taiwan	$3,270	$4,987	$8,257
Spain	$1,002	$6,004	$7,006
Germany	$635	$5,650	$6,285

Source - HSBC Report - Australia Most Expensive Country for International Study

There are 5 countries provide a reasonable and affordable tuition fees and cost of living expenses just under USD10,000 per year.  Go explore the further education opportunities available in these countries and you may find a course that might suit you. If you in doubt about the education quality in these countries, go visit QS Top University Rankings and The Times Higher Education Rankings to find out the quality of the universities as well as its ranking by subjects.

For the case of further study in China, the opportunity to obtain scholarship while study in China is very promising if you are good in academic. China government has made a significant financial commitment to attract more international students to study at its universities and colleges by way of offering full or partial waiver of tuition fees. Every year, they are about 10% of the international students were sponsored either at National-Level, Local-Level or University-Level.

Below is the types of scholarships offers at China's National-Level and some examples of scholarship offered at Local-Level:

Do your research and weight your options well before committing a debt that might ruin your life if thing turned out not the way your expected. Below are some links to assist and guide you to make an informed decision before committing a student loan.

As I always said - Why not enjoy the best from both worlds?

Think and plan - International Study is Expensive: Weigh Costs
                            Against Quality

References for student loan:

1. Student news and advice

2. Working your way through college doesn't add up for today's students

3. Higher education - Is college worth it?

4. How Much Is Too Much Student Loan Debt?