Malaysia among top 10 preferred destination for international students: Idris Jusoh

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia is now among the top 10 countries in the world with students seeking tertiary education abroad.
According to data by the Unesco Institute of Statistic (UIS), Malaysia now has 56,260 students in higher learning institutes abroad and is ranked 8th, just below the US at 60,292 and just above Vietnam at 53,546.
In lieu of that, Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh said that Malaysia is also becoming an increasingly preferable option for foreign students seeking tertiary education abroad.
"This is due to the quality of education offered here, affordable cost of living, they (foreign students) love our culture, and they are comfortable here," Idris said during a press conference today.
Furthermore, he said Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia's (UKM) Professor Dr. Mohamed Amin Embi had just won the Educator Award by Open Education Consortium and that is an indication of the quality of education in Malaysia.
Idris said this is also the result of collaboration between public and private universities in the country and the quality of education is also increasing English proficiency by 27% according to the Malaysia University English Test (MUET).
He also pointed out that Universiti Malaya is currently ranked 146 in the QS World University Rankings 2015-2016, and the Ministry is targeting to achieve a ranking of 50 and above.
Idris was launching the 20th Malaysian Education Summit at the Sunway Resort Hotel and Spa today.
Sunway Group chairman and founder Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah said there is great potential for excellence and expansion in the Malaysian education industry.
"We can be the Harvard of the east, and it is important for us to rise up and take the challenge to excel," Cheah said.