Universiti Malaya retains its place among the global top-100 universities for a fourth consecutive year in the QS World University Rankings 2022, further establishing its status among this group of elite institutions. In ranking 65th, it achieves its second-best performance in the history of the rankings. There are more than 25,000 institutions of higher learning worldwide.
Universiti Malaya’s top-100 status is based on outstanding recognition amongst academics and employers. Its scores for QS’s reputational indicators – Academic Reputation (72nd, 76.9 percent) and Employer Reputation - have trended upwards over the last year, and it has now achieved one of the world’s top 50 Employer Reputation scores (46th, 91.7 percent) for the first time.
According to QS Quacquarelli Symonds, global higher education analysts, the Academic Reputation Index is the centrepiece of the QS World University Rankings®, carrying a weighting of 40 percent. It is an approach to international university evaluation that QS pioneered in 2004 and based on survey responses from over 130,000 academics, is the component that attracts the greatest interest and scrutiny.
The Employer Reputation metric is based on almost 75,000 responses to the QS Employer Survey, and asks employers to identify institutions from which they source the most competent, innovative and effective graduates. The QS Employer Survey is also the world’s largest of its kind.
According to Universiti Malaya’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dato’ Ir. Dr. Mohd Hamdi Abd Shukor, this year’s achievement of breaking through the world’s top 50 in Employer Reputation is a testament to Universiti Malaya’s success in providing education as a means by which students can receive valuable preparation for the employment market.
“We are currently implementing a more robust teaching and learning component through precision intervention, where we identify students’ inclination, character, personality, and mental strength through psychometric tests in order to adapt a more precise approach in teaching and learning to cultivate their potential to the highest extent.
“In addition, we have introduced the ELITE@UM (Experiential Learning with Industries and Technocrats) programme, where students will learn directly from industry leaders. Currently, we have appointed distinguished leaders such as Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs; Tan Sri Chan Kong Choy, Former Minister of Transport; Dato’ Kamaruzzaman Abu Kassim, Former CEO of Johor Corporation (JCorp), Mohd Muazzam Mohamed, CEO of Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd (BIMB) and many others as adjunct professors, where they will present lectures to our students. The desired outcome for this initiative is to create more future leaders in every field that our graduates venture into”.
In other areas, Universiti Malaya is ranked at 285 (Citations per Faculty), 155 (Faculty/Student ratio), 312 (International Faculty) and 333 (International Students), contributing to an overall score of 69.8 percent, slipping by a slim margin of 0.43 percent from last year.
“We had predicted the slip as our growth slowed down especially in terms of publications. We are focusing on ways to mitigate further decline and have identified factors that need immediate attention.
“First and foremost, our research productivity needs to be doubled, which means that we need more research grants as they contribute to research work, equipment maintenance, as well as employment of good postdoctoral fellows and researchers, which in turn contributes to high-impact research.
“Faculty to student ratio also needs to be managed appropriately, where we need to realign our number of full-time staff in addition to attracting, recruiting and retaining international staff at all levels.”
Dato’ Hamdi reassures that actions are underway to enable Universiti Malaya to maintain its quality and reputation through the recently-announced Universiti Malaya Strategic Plan (2021-2025).
He also welcomed the brighter news that in total, QS has ranked 22 Malaysian institutions in this year’s rankings – a record high number.
“I wish to congratulate all the institutions listed and especially the Ministry of Higher Education for the support and leadership that has enabled Malaysia to garner increasing recognition on the global stage.
“In our bid to serve the nation and impact the world, Universiti Malaya is also thankful to many who have been with us through our ups and downs.
“I would like to thank the University community - staff and students, as well as our partners and collaborators for their commitment and contribution. My sincerest gratitude goes to the Chancellor, Pro-Chancellors and Board of Directors of Universiti Malaya for their strong support.
“I am pleased that Universiti Malaya continues to place Malaysia on the global stage through our dedication, commitment, and hard work towards serving the nation and impacting the world. UM will continue to strive to push the boundaries of knowledge and nurture aspiring leaders”.
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