Malaysia sets ambitious growth targets

The Malaysian Higher Education Ministry has set a target of earning RM6 billion (US$1.9 billion) from 200,000 international students annually by the year 2020. The country has also announced that is has received 25 applications from overseas institutions to open branch campuses in Malaysia.

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Minister Datuk Seri Khaled Nordin said the projection was based on an average of RM30,000 (US$9,500) per student. He said that Malaysia has positioned itself as a stable, safe and relatively cheap place for international students to study. Malaysia currently hosts around 93,000 students from over 100 different countries, and has targets of 150,000 by 2015, and 200,000 by 2020.

Khaled said that Malaysia’s burgeoning reputation as an education hub was fuelling a growing number of branch campus applications. “Now that Malaysia has become a popular destination for the pursuit of higher education among foreign students, more and more established, reputable universities from around the world will set up their branch campuses here, working jointly with Malaysian universities and colleges.”

Seven branch campuses are already operating in Malaysia, with 25 applications now under consideration and more expected. However, the ministry said that guidelines are being drafted for the operation of branch campuses and that not all would necessarily be accepted. Fees would need to remain affordable, and priority is likely to be given to institutions that can offer high-demand programmes not easily available in Malaysia, while standards would need to match those of the main home campus.

The education ministry has also announced that Education Malaysia Global Services (EMGS) will begin operations later this year as a one-stop centre to monitor, oversee and coordinate the marketing of Malaysia’s higher education.