USM as APEX University - PKAPUSM's Reaction

4th September 2008 USM Selected as Apex University – PKAPUSM’s Reaction

The Universiti Sains Malaysia Academic and Administrative Staff Association (PKAPUSM) welcome the move by the Ministry of Higher Education to categorize USM as the Apex University in Malaysia. We congratulate USM and her staff for their continuous effort in proving that they can and will achieve “world-class status” through the Accelerated Program for Excellence (APEX) initiative.

USM is the second oldest university in Malaysia and will commemorate its 4Oth anniversary next year. Having been selected as the Apex University will be a great challenge to USM and it will have to prove its worth and capability to be one of the world’s top universities in the near future. However, without cooperation of all segments of the USM staff and students, it will not be easy for USM to realize its plan of action. Words have to be translated into hard work and academic dynamism.

To be categorized as an Apex University is not like being given a crown, but it is accepting the duty and trust for USM to pursue higher and leading the higher education edge in Malaysia. The people of Malaysia and the world in general will witness what USM is made up of. We are of the opinion that to be a world-class university, the immediate thing to create or achieve is the culture of excellence on campus, it will encompasses the academic culture, research culture and intellectual culture. With respect to creating the culture of excellence which is the prerequisite towards achieving a world-class university, several factors have to be taken seriously.

1. Teaching and Learning – Improvement in the quality of teaching and learning, recruiting more academic staff and expert with the best qualifications. The quality of students also needs to be assessed before admission to the undergraduate and postgraduate programs.

2. Research – Even though the research track record in USM can be proud of, nonetheless, research activities need to be increased and upgraded in all fields with immediate effect. The immediate benefit of research can be presented in the classroom for both postgraduate and undergraduates apart from being disseminated in peer-reviewed journals of discipline concerned or presented in conferences. Research is the engine of economic development, it will contribute expertise, skills, knowledge generation and dissemination. However, the overzealousness for research should not be at the expense of teaching. Ideally, research and teaching should complement each other, and one of the attribute of a world-class university is to be able to strike the right balance between the two.

3. Academic Freedom and University Autonomy – University autonomy normally refers to the independence of universities from the state and all other forces of society, to make decision regarding its internal government, finance, administration, and to establish its policies of education, research, extension work and other related activities. History has shown that those universities which retained their autonomous status have a long tradition of scholarship and at the forefront of research in their own societies.

Autonomy will promote academic freedom and intellectual dynamism that is central to a world-class university. Academic freedom refers to “the freedom of members of the academic community individually or collectively, in the pursuit, development and transmission of knowledge, through research, study, discussion, documentation, production, creation, teaching, lecturing and writing.” Thus, unless academic freedom is given its due place and respect within a university, significant contribution to the quality of the institution as a whole cannot be promoted to an excellent level. In this respect, USM should exercise its university autonomy and academic freedom through greater autonomy and flexibility that was enshrined under the Apex initiative.

4. Academic Leadership – One of the important attribute of a world-class university is self-governance, where internal self-governance by ensuring that the academic community has control over the main academic functions such as admission of students, curriculum, criteria for graduation, selection of new members of the professoriate, and future direction of the institution. A university is neither a government department nor a business agency. A university of excellence will require a democratic leadership to be able to cater to the needs of various disciplines and coordinate them in such a way that the mission of the university will be fulfilled.
Academic leadership is essential to navigate the university to achieve a world-class status. Appointing the right person can lead the institution to the platform of excellence, while promoting the wrong individual can be a journey down the mediocratic path.

PKAPUSM belief that the campus community need to unite their forces to make the Apex initiative a reality. The academic staff will play a major role in realizing the Accelerated Program for Excellence (APEX); however, other groups should not be marginalized. We may need new thinking and new negotiation, particularly in relation to terms of services. Under the Apex scheme the university should be able to attract more academics and researcher with calibre from within and outside Malaysia. However, those people who have given their long service and have been loyal to the university should not be neglected..

A world-class university is not about producing scientists, engineers, doctors and technicians with higher degrees. What we are lacking are thinkers in our universities in particular and our society in general.

Wan Abdul Manan Wan Muda
President