Tag: UiTM

On 18 March 2023, UiTM Perak Branch, Malaysia, under the Green Campus Committee and Green Safe Cities (GreSAFE) Research Group, collaborated with the housing community of Puncak Iskandar, Perak, and the local council of Perak Tengah, Malaysia in disseminating the solar lighting technology towards enhancing the safety level of the neighborhood. Under the initiation and support of the UiTM Perak technical team, Assoc. Prof. Sr Dr. Nur Azfahani Ahmad addressed that this program is sequential knowledge and technology transfer program using a community-based approach.

This program has successfully gathered 30 academic and supporting staff of the UiTM Perak Branch, 15 staff from the local council, and more than 50 community members in the installation process of 12 units of solar lighting system in the housing surroundings, the amenities, and playgrounds. The municipal councilor, Mr. Syukri Azaari, highlights that this program helps to strengthen the safety, security, well-being, and inclusivity of the community toward crime prevention. It aligns with the Malaysian Twelfth Plan (2021-2025) and United Nation Sustainable Development Goals No 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) and No 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) by synchronizing the plan of Malaysian Science, Technology, Innovation, and Economic (MySTIE), specifically Smart Cities and Transportation. The community leader, Dr. Norhazlan Haron has supported the program and agreed that the people’s quality and welfare are improved with the aid of green energy. It significantly strengthens the country’s prosperity by enhancing the excellence of academia through green technology applications.

At current, UiTM Perak Branch under the Green Campus initiative and Green Safe Cities Research Group are actively conducting various activities focusing on resilient and safe communities in Malaysia. It includes activities on crime prevention through environmental design, green environment of safe cities, and resilient cities with green management.

It was a life-changing experience for three students from the Faculty of Business and Management (FBM), Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Malaysia, Puncak Alam campus, when they were given the opportunity to participate in the Asian International Mobility for Students (AIMS) programme at Kangwon National University (KNU), Chuncheon, Republic of South Korea during the spring semester of February 2022. AIMS is SEAMEO RIHED’s  (Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization Regional Centre specialising in higher education and development) flagship regional initiative to support student mobility and improve cooperation among Asian nations in higher education.

During the 5-months exchange program, the three FBM’s students, Siti Sarah, Muhammad Naqib and Dina Hanani attended various credit transfer classes under the department of international trade at KNU. Classes were taught entirely in English or in a dual language, Korean and English by the professors at KNU. At KNU, they were also given a chance to learn the Korean language to help them better adapt to their surroundings.

To further enhance their sense of university life at KNU and learn more about the language and culture of South Korea, the FBM’s students were paired with KNU’s students through the buddy program. They also visited places in South Korea such as Busan and Seoul, giving them the opportunity to learn beyond the classroom’s walls. For Siti Sarah, she found this program to be an experience that completely changed her life. While, Muhammad Naqib said, “this program was exciting and full of adventure as there were abundance of new things and knowledge to be explored”. Dina Hanani claimed, “the program was wonderful, beyond her expectations and had pushed students to be adventurous and go out of their comfort zone”.

Basically, this exchange program had provided the Malaysian students the educational experience that brings together local and foreign students to form networks and learn more about Korean history, culture, and business. Not only that, one of them was even awarded a scholarship by KNU. This once in a lifetime opportunity enabled the students to gain knowledge and experience that make them more grounded and probably could contribute to UiTM and the nation.

For the program’s video, go to https://youtu.be/FLZmV2KtMtE

UiTM has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Research and Education Development (READ) Institute, Indonesia. READ collaborating with the Faculty of Education and Teacher Training of IAIN Palopo, Indonesia provides a platform called the International Journal of Asian Education (IJAE) that welcomes and acknowledges high-quality original papers about education written by researchers, academicians, professionals, and practitioners over the world. IJAE has been approved for inclusion in the European Reference Index for the Humanities (ERIH PLUS).

International Journal of Asian Education is a publication of general education studies. It offers professional and academic analyses of global issues at all stages of education, both formal and informal. It publishes peer-reviewed articles by international authors across a variety of education and viewpoints, including pedagogy and instruction, history, philosophy, psychology, sociology, international and comparative education, and educational leadership. Articles provide original insights into formal and informal education policy, service, processes, and practice and the experience of all those concerned in a variety of countries around the world.

The MoU agreement that has been initiated by Ts. Dr. Duratul Ain Tholibon, senior lecturer from the Civil Engineering Studies, College of Engineering, UiTM Pahang Branch, Jengka Campus, Malaysia has met the performance indicator of PI No. 74 and 90 i.e., new MoUs with international industrial and universities related to academic or research activities. This MoU agreement was signed on a desk-to-desk basis, which was represented by YBhg. Prof. Ts. Dr. Mohd Ilham Bin Adenan, Rector of UiTM Pahang Branch, while READ was represented by Dr. Dodi Ilham, Director of the READ Institute.

This MoU agreement will be forged for one year to increase collaboration between UiTM and READ. It is hoped that this MoU will strengthen, promote, and expand international collaboration
in the fields of academia, culture, and research. This MoU signing initiative is aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) No.17, which focuses on partnerships for the goals. It is hoped that these efforts will highlight UiTM Pahang Branch Campus’ global visibility.

In the era of IR 4.0, the demand for highly skilled workers increases while the demand for low-skilled jobs will decline. To embrace this era, Malaysia needs more young generations who have expertise in the field of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). As STEM has a close relationship with the development of technology, the prime minister also gave hope that STEM-related subjects should be given attention.

Strengthening the quality of STEM education has been listed as one of the components in shifts to transform the Malaysia education system, as stated in Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013-2025, with an emphasis on practical applications of knowledge through laboratory and project-based work. Nevertheless, current trends in Malaysia showed reducing interest in science education, with less than one fifth of secondary school students choosing science stream. There is a need to prepare the young people to face the IR 4.0 challenge by ensuring they have high education and skills.

Therefore, the School of Biology, UiTM Cawangan Negeri Sembilan, Kampus Kuala Pilah took the initiative to be directly involved in activities promoting and empowering the STEM field at the level of the younger generation since the campus has sufficient facilities. They have organized the Little Scientist in Action! program in the last school holiday season which provides useful activities to fill the children’s time off. The program held for two days on 7th and 8th September 2022 involved the full participation of 60 children aged between 4 and 12 years. This program was conducted with the aim of fueling children’s interest in science, especially in the field of biology, through observation and experiments in the laboratory. In addition, participants were exposed to new experiences in learning outside of school and communicating with peers of various ages and different schools.

During the two-day program, participants were exposed to various experiments in the field of biology, such as isolation of microorganisms from multiple samples, plant transpiration and animals’ observation. The participants were assisted by facilitators consisting of lecturers, laboratory staff and students of the biology study center. In line with technological and digital needs, there are also learning slots using interactive videos and VR headsets.

This program provides an opportunity for primary school students to do hands-on science experiments, since they are not exposed to complete laboratory facilities at school. With this program initiative, it is hoped to help students to understand a concept learned at school, as well as encourage students to think critically, as well as increase their motivation and interest in the field of science. It is also hoped that this program will be able to have a positive impact on the children in particular, and the country of Malaysia in general.

A seven-member delegation led by Associate Professor Dr Saidatul Akmar Ismail of the Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Malaysia attached to Education University of Indonesia (locally known as Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia – UPI) for three months beginning April to June 2022. Since WHO allowed the open-up of international borders for foreign visitors, this was the first “physical” outbound activity that bridged UiTM with the international universities. The delegation from the School of Information Science (SIS), College of Computing, Informatics, and Media (formerly known as Faculty of Information Management) was the first to set foot in Bandung City where UPI is located. They were attached to the Faculty of Education Studies, Program of Librarianship and Information Studies.

The delegation had the opportunity to participate in faculty activities, such as educational visits to national library, city library, school library, historic museum and archives, students of core academic courses (library management and cataloguing & classification), and other international student-related activities. The academic staff invited as expert speakers and lecturers to the academic and students’ events. The 100% commitment and agile move of the SIS outbound activities are beyond expectations, provide a tremendous effect on the SIS’s academic experience, perspectives, and thus, raise the profile of UiTM and SIS in the field of library and information management.

During the outbound activities, the outbound academic and UPI faculty members discussed the possibilities of undertaking joint collaborative academic and research programs between UPI Bandung, West Java and UiTM Malaysia. In addition, there is a need for producing skilled graduates at both the universities through training and internship programs, awarded with certification or outbound certificate for librarianship. This competency certification will add value to this outbound program.

SIS is committed to providing quality education. With the international mobility programs, this platform enables the SIS’s internationalization goal to escalate, the inter-university partnerships intensify, and thus, the UiTM’s presence abroad soar. It is hoped that more SIS academics and students, in particular, would participate in the global academics’ and students’ exchange activities and gain a new horizon of knowledge, exposure, and network.

TAGS #Universiti Teknologi MARA #Pusat Pengajian Sains Maklumat #School of Information Science #College of Computing, Informatics and Media #UiTM #SIS #SISiSchool

The Malaysia Education Blueprint reaffirmed the student’s primacy in transforming the education system. In tandem with UiTM 2025 Strategic Plan, Faculty of Applied Sciences (FSG) strives to provide a conducive learning environment that produces holistic graduates with entrepreneurial skills who are globally competitive. However, preparing the students to thrive in this complex and ever-changing future necessitates equally exceptional supports from the institution.

FSG has a dedicated team responsible for providing outstanding academic and non-academic support to its 4623 students. A total of 108 virtual activities were conducted in 2021 through collaborative efforts between the Managements, HEP, Majlis Perwakilan Pelajar (MPP), Sekretariat Mahasiswa Fakulti (SMF), and 14 student associations, fostering student’s leadership, entrepreneurial skills, community-based volunteerism, and providing a platform for students to unleash their potential in co-curricular activities related to innovations, e-sports and international linkages.

Encouragement, administrative procedure and funding support are always given to engage with international peers, co-curricular activities and entrepreneurship programs. In 2021, FSG sent 4 students to AIMS mobility programs at Mae Fah Luang University, Thailand and an exchange program at Southern Connecticut State University, USA; 40 students interned at multinational companies, and 2 of which were Forbes 2000 companies; one student was named a UiTM Unicorn Scholar for a start-up company called Sulam Global Enterprise; and one student won first place for 2021 Voice Out Loud competition.

Facing the ODL, FSG welcomed and equipped new students with relevant academic and social information via a virtual Get-To-Know-Day. Tips and sharing sessions about ODL tools were also shared during the event. This initiative aids students’ transition into the university system when they begin. FSG also created a year-round platform for students to express concerns or share ODL feedback via e-aduan. The MPP presented 440 feedbacks to the Management teams which helped improve the ODL session. Consequently, Dean lists increased from 1181 in October 2020 to 1343 in Mac 2021. Monetary incentive was provided to all Dean list students to encourage their academic excellence.

Beyond the academic matter, FSG is deeply concerned with students’ well-being especially in times of anxiety and uncertainty. Unique to FSG, students have access to a telegram group (FSGXCIC) with an in-house counsellor who assists them in coping with any aspect of student life. This platform shares infographics on study tips, mental health awareness, and career paths periodically. Less fortunate students were assisted through faculty welfare funds in addition to zakat and other contributions from faculty members:15 LENOVO smart tabs worth RM 6300 raised through “Tabung Prihatin FSG” were distributed to assist students in their learning, while 140 students stranded in college were given RM 100 one-off via Bantuan Khas Non-Resident during the recent MCO. Following unfortunate events, 43 students involved in the recent flood received flash donations or Derma Ikhlas.

The compassion and support provided enhance trust and sense of belonging, expectation and positive experiences for the current and incoming students. Despite the unprecedented impact of pandemic, students will have the reassurance that FSG cares about their welfare as proclaimed in the taglines #UiTMdihatiku #FSGKuSayang#FSGpadu.

On 8th June 2022, Dr. Ikmal Hisham Md Tah moderated a forum session “MyCEKAP Public Facilities: Inclusivity Discussion on Policy and Initiative by the Ministry of Transport Malaysia”. The forum session discussed matters concerning public facility and inclusivity, with the objective of providing information to People with Disabilities (PWD) on the Government’s efforts in improving policies, action plans and programmes that benefit vulnerable communities which include persons with disabilities.

In addition, the forum session also aimed to encourage participation from the community to build an inclusive society; and to create participants’ profiles to ensure sharing of information in an effective manner. The forum session was organised by the People With Disabilities Communication Unit, Department of Information Malaysia, Putrajaya.

Ms. Ayuni Mahammad Zin, officer from the Ministry of Transport Malaysia, elaborated on various initiatives by the Ministry that benefit PWD during the session. They include accessible public transport, transport licence, and audit access on transport facilities. Works and continuous improvements on public transport, including trains and buses, have been carried out to ensure that the facilities are disabled-friendly and accessible to everyone.

In addition, the Malaysian government has also provided numerous initiatives, including the discount card for PWD, the accessible ticket counter, the PWD platform and ample accessible places within public transport infrastructure for wheelchair users, the portable ramp, and the emergency button. Ministry of Transport Malaysia, through its National Transport Policy and Action Plan, has provided continuous improvements, including best practices on the transport system and facilities to ensure that they would be accessible and could provide more benefits to the PWD community in Malaysia. This program demonstrates a significant contribution of UiTMLaw expert at the forefront of disability inclusion within society through accessible and disabled-friendly transport systems and facilities in Malaysia.

Adapting to the new normal arises from COVID-19 pandemic has evolved digitalization initiatives within the Faculty of Applied Sciences’ (FSG, UiTM) various operational systems. In the key operational systems, the faculty began the transition from manual to digital logging. These processes involve the synergy of both academic and administrative staff. These include the centralised log of chemical stocks, which previously faced challenges of excess orders due to non-centered laboratories and a wide range of research fields. The existence of a digital platform called “Setulus” that records the availability of chemical stock; remarkably, no more redundancy in orders, cutting the cost by 50% and allowing researchers and students to find chemicals 60% quicker.

The final year students may still be affected by the uncertain conditions post-COVID-19. During their internships, the report now has been accomplished via digital logbook. Faculty are concerned that the majority of articles produced as a result of final year research projects went unpublished, thus we established, Junior Science Communication (JSC); an online publication where final-year students may publish short articles on their research findings. In 2021, 12 issues were produced, including contributions from all UiTM platforms.

As a top research faculty, communications are vital for reporting the achievements. The RIA page was created to serve as the official website for the department of research, industry, and alumni. All research procedures and processes are centralised on a single platform to eliminate under-reporting and misunderstandings among employees over where to report, Single Chanel Reporting was created. This digital platform simplifies the process of locating the required information, and has now processed over a hundred data points. Hence, academics interested in joining the research track will be able to apply entirely online. This permits year-round applications and the approval procedure is speedier than the traditional approach, requiring just two weeks instead of two months, and had assisted about a third of FSG’s research track aspiring.

As all creative minds at all levels are celebrated, various innovations have emerged in 2021. The anti-locked door knob was created by technical and academic staff of FSG. Missing the key in the room has been remedied at a very low installation cost. Other discoveries include the Thumb Print Analysis Box, based on a forensic powder experiment, that keeps the powder out of the lab and keeps it clean.

FSG researchers continue creating substantial advances for society. AgroFarm2U exemplifies FSG and a local enterprise working together. They built an Agrofarm2U IoT-based vegetable growing system. The Internet of Things optimises fertiliser and water consumption, allowing farmers to monitor plant settings. FSG textile scientists designed the Malaysian Olympic Sailing team’s outfit in partnership with Fitech Asia Plt. Our athletes’ textiles are designed to be breathable and comfortable. Sternazip was created to help heart patients prevent infection after open chest surgery. Together with a heart surgeon, FSG scientists created an anti-bacterial silicon substance that has gained worldwide renown. These key insights will help build in intrinsic agility which further strike that right digital balance and disrupt to make FSG different.

Over the past few years, we have begun to detect a pattern of declining student interest for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)-based be it in school and at the university level. This phenomenon will affect the ‘output’ of engineers, scientists, and doctors. Adding to this, it will also have implications for the specialist workforce, even thwarting efforts to achieve the status of a developed country. Industry players especially those involved in the industrial revolution 4.0 (IR4.0) have aware of this issue and creating concern among them. Effort has to be made and one of the ways to overcome this phenomenon is to diversify methods in conducting STEM-based experiments at the high school level by leveraging the experience and expertise of lecturers and graduate students at local universities.

In order to implement this effort, a group of lecturers and graduate students from the Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Negeri Sembilan Branch (UiTMCNS) Malaysia have implemented a joint venture program with one of the high schools in the state, Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Seremban Jaya 2 (SMKSJ2) entitled “STEM Empowerment Program”. The main objective of this program is to guide students to carry out an experiment by hands-on experience. Besides that, this program is also focusing to enhance their skills in handling the experiments to prepare them to sit for the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination practical papers.

In this program, the subject areas involved were Physics, Chemistry and Biology. For the Physics experiments, the students were performing two experiments: the free fall and thermodynamic. As for the Chemistry, the students have carried out copper electroplating and titration experiment. Last but not least, students have carried out experiments related to Biology in which they studied the effect of temperature on the activity of amylase enzymes and carried out cell division by mitosis. All experiments were successfully conducted with the guidance of professional facilitators from each field. On top of that, the students were given the opportunity to explore and conduct each experiment themselves. In this way, students can develop their passion in STEM and hopefully pursue their studies in the STEM fields. Apart from conducting experiments, the students were also guided on how to produce a good scientific report. These skills are very important to prepare them as future scientists and researchers in STEM fields.

The “STEM Empowerment Program” ended successfully and received amazing feedback from the students and their teachers. This kind of program provide hands-on and minds-on lessons for the student. It has made STEM activities fun and interesting which in turn helps the student to do much more than just learn.

It is hoped that more programs outside the school in collaboration with UiTM can be continued, especially for rural students who lack in terms of laboratory facilities and expertise. Together with the Malaysian government support toward the IR4.0 industry, this program can generate a positive impact to increase the student’s interest in STEM-based area and eventually prepares professionals who can transform society with innovation and sustainable solutions.

On 9th September 2022, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Cawangan Negeri Sembilan (UiTMCNS) held virtual appreciation ceremony to celebrate the success of securing 15 Memorandums of Understanding and Agreements (MoU/MoA) with respected institutions and industry players throughout 2021. Of all the 15 MoU/MoA signed, 10 of them were from international indurstries while the other 5 were from national institutions and industries. The international institutions involved were Yamanashi Gakuin University (Japan), Global University Lebanon, Universitas Pahlawan Tuanku Tambusai Indonesia, Institut Agama Islam Negeri (IAIN) Palangka Raya Indonesia, Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji Indonesia, Universitas Brawijaya Indonesia, Universitas Padjadjaran Indonesia, Southeast Asian Regional Centre for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) and Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz Iran.

On the other hand, the national institutions and industry players who signed the agreements were Multimedia University Malaysia (MMU), National Audit Department, Nanyang Dreams International Trading Sdn. Bhd., Genting Malaysia Berhad, Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Centre Berhad (MaGIC) and South East Asia Rainforest Research Partnership (SEARRP). The objectives of these agreements are multifaceted which include elevating excellence in teaching and learning, producing globally recognized graduates, flourish research, innovations and publications activities, stimulates consultation and commercialization, encouraging students’ mobility programs (inbound and outbound), hold mutually beneficial activities together such as international seminars and knowledge sharing, advancing fields such as forestry, agriculture, sports science, food technology, big data analytics and developing human capital among staff and students.

Among activities that have been conducted with the strategic partners were big data analytic course with National Audit Department Malaysia, consultation for MMU athletes, joint international conferences and research activities, students’ mobility program between UiTMCNS and few institutions, food product development competitions with Nanyang Dreams, collaborative teaching, supervising students, joint examination, industrial talk, recruiting graduate students, acceptance of students for research, organization of short courses and meetings with SEARCA, exchange of information on student development and teaching and research innovations. Professor Datuk Ts. Dr. Hajah Roziah Mohd Janor, UiTM Vice Chancellor also congratulated UiTMCNS for securing these new national and international partnerships for UiTM. She asserted in her speech during the ceremony, “I truly hope these MoUs and MoAs will encourage better mobility programs, industrial training and academic visits. We also need to produce a more robust ecosystem that stimulates new research and innovations.” All these efforts are geared to fulfilling UiTM goals of becoming Globally Renowned University (GRU) by 2025 by anchoring on three strategic thrusts which are quality education, global excellence and value-driven performance.

Professor Dr. Yamin Yasin, Rector of UiTMCNS in his speech during the ceremony added, “I am certain that the collaboration with strategic partners have significant contribution in transforming UiTM into GRU. Hence, I wish to take this opportunity to thank the strategic partners and to congratulate the Faculty of Sports Science & Recreation, Faculty of Computer and Mathematical Sciences, Academy of Contemporary Islamic Studies, Academy of Language Studies, School of Biology, School of Industrial Technology, Faculty of Communication & Media Studies and Faculty of Business & Management of UiTMCNS. They have given solid commitments in initiating these collaborations” Overall, most of the strategic partners mutually agreed that the signed MoUs and MoAs are not only beneficial to UiTM but to their institutions as well. Dr. Dadang Rahmat Hidayat, Dean of Faculty of Communication Science from University of Padjadjaran regarded this partnership with UiTM as an outstanding opportunity to extend the outreach of their university in improving international recognition to their institution.