SEGi Receives Ministry’s Invitation to be Upgraded to University College

INVITATION TO UPGRADE: Datuk Clement Hii (centre), Prof Dr Muhamad Awang (left) and Puan Roswati Rahmat, Head of Segi Regulatory Affairs with the letter of invitation from the higher education ministry.

11th June 2008 - SEGi College Malaysia was recently invited by the Ministry of Higher Education, under section 22 of the Private Higher Education Act 1996 to upgrade to status of University College. The invitation letter, signed by Minister of Higher Education, YB Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled bin Nordin on 8th of April 2008, proposed the name SEGi University College following the upgrade. University Putra Malaysia’s former Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dr. Muhamad bin Awang has been appointed to head the new University College. Prior to this, Prof. Muhamad was attached to the Ministry of Higher Education as an advisor. “The invitation by the Ministry is another feather in SEGi’s cap. It marks the beginning of a new chapter of SEGi’s development as a leading provider of industry relevant qualifications that are globally recognised,” said Datuk Clement Hii, its Group Chief Executive Officer. “Being invited to upgrade to University College status indicates that we have met stringent quality requirements assessed by the Ministry, and we are honoured by the trust placed on SEGi in complementing the efforts of the government in making Malaysia a hub of educational excellence,” Hii added.

According to Vice Chancellor-designate Prof. Muhamad, among the requirements met by SEGi are top-notch teaching and learning facilities available at its flagship campus. The RM150 million campus, recently launched by the Prime Minister, with full-fledged infrastructure including state-of-the-art laboratories, student residence, sports & recreational complex is able to provide a complete learning experience for up to 12,000 students, both local and international.

“Of course the academic team plays a crucial role in our upgrade to University College status as well. Aside from possessing the right academic qualifications and industry experience, our faculty members undergo continuous upgrading and training. Plans are in motion to recruit and upgrade the qualifications of its academic staff to PhD level in the next few years,” Prof. Muhamad added.

The newly upgraded University College also aims to encourage research and development culture among its academic staff, particularly in projects that cross-fertilisers among different faculties. The publication of the inaugural SEGi Review reflects the new direction of SEGi.

SEGi College is poised to offer more programmes other than its traditional business, accountancy and engineering programmes. Recently announced, the Group is looking at moving towards offering programmes of in the areas of Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Nursing and Allied Health Sciences.

“We have already launched our Pharmacy, Dental and Nursing Centre last week. And we received approval to offer the 2+2 Master of Pharmacy in collaboration with the University of Sunderland. Plans are also underway to offer medicine and dentistry degrees in collaboration with University Airlangga (UNAIR). I am confident SEGi will grow further in status and programmes.”

Consistent with its tagline “Passion Guided Industry Driven”, care is taken to ensure that programmes available at the University College are recognised by the industry, particularly its professional bodies, both in Malaysia and overseas.

SEGi will continue to collaborate with its consortium of global universities in other disciplines in areas of product development, as well as providing pathways for its students to obtain internationally recognised degrees.

With these firm plans, SEGi is poised to take a quantum leap growth in the near future.