Malaysia Scholarship 2008-2009

Apex Universities To Be Named

The names of the first one or two apex universities will be known in the next six months.

Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed said members of the selection committee, to comprise retired and serving academics, young professionals and government officials, would be named in a week.

“We have had two meetings with several parties on the terms of reference for the committee and have lots of input already,” he told reporters at his ministry’s Hari Raya open house on Monday.

During the launch of the National Higher Education Strategic Plan and National Higher Education Action Plan 2007-2010 in August, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said apex universities would be identified from among local higher education institutions.

The highest quality of academics, management, teaching and research would be given priority in apex universities, which would be given more autonomy than other universities, said Abdullah.

On a call to abolish the administrative costs for National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) loans and for them to be disbursed without any charges, interest or fees, Mustapa explained that the Employees Provident Fund was providing loans to PTPTN at 5%.


Out of this, he said students had to pay an administrative cost of 3% (as part of their loan repayments) with the Government subsidising the remaining 2%.

“This costs the Government RM300mil per annum. Many may hope the Government can provide free tertiary education for all but it is getting more expensive,” he said.

He said the Government was already subsidising 88% of the total cost of studying in public universities, adding that students paid the remaining 12%.

PTPTN now had about one million borrowers, he said, adding the number would increase to between one-and-a-half million to two million in five years.