Universities in Malaysia

Universities in Malaysia 

Malaysia is home to several international branch campuses of universities from other countries, a plan aimed at expanding and improving the country’s range of higher education options. Existing branch campuses include those operated by the UK’s University of Nottingham and Australia’s Monash University. 

Malaysia’s investment in branch campuses has resulted in the new EduCity development in Johor, at the southernmost tip of Peninsular Malaysia, just 5km north of Singapore.  This 350-acre campus will be shared by eight international branches run by leading universities from around the world. These include the UK’s University of Reading, the University of Southampton and Newcastle University Medicine, as well as the Netherlands’ Maritime Institute of Technology, Singapore’s private Raffles University and the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts from the US.

While the growing presence of overseas universities in Malaysia is broadening the country’s higher education offering, its home-grown universities shouldn’t be overlooked. Malaysia’s higher education system was ranked 25th in the QS Higher Education System Strength Rankings in 2018, reflecting the strength of its flagship universities. Here are some of the most notable.

Universiti Malaya (UM)

The highest-ranked and oldest university in Malaysia, Universiti Malaya (UM) is ranked 59th in the QS World University Rankings® 2021 and is based in central Kuala Lumpur. With a student population of around 21,050, including over 2,900 international postgraduate students, UM has been steadily growing its multidisciplinary reputation, appearing in the global top 400 for 35 out of a possible 48 subjects covered by the QS World University Rankings by Subject, including positions among the world’s top 50 for development studies, every branch of engineering, and library and information management.

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM)

Located in Bangi, Selangor, approximately 35km south of Kuala Lumpur city center, the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) takes 141st place in the world rankings. Hosting a student community of almost 27,000, the school boasts particularly strong programs in the fields of education, politics, engineering, law and mathematics. The Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia also has a graduate school on its main campus and a medical school located in the suburb of Cheras, with a branch campus within the capital.

Universiti Putra Malaya (UPM)

Universiti Putra Malaya (UPM) is ranked 132nd in the world rankings and 28th in the Asia rankings. Located mainly in Serdang, it’s considered one of the country’s leading research universities and was originally founded in 1931 as a school of agriculture. This legacy is reflected in its performance in the subject rankings. Of the 23 subjects in which UPM is internationally ranked, it appears within the top 100 for agriculture and forestry and chemical engineering.​

Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM)

Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), also known as the University of Science Malaysia, currently ranks 142nd in the world and ranks within the global top 50 for its mining engineering programs according to the latest QS World University Rankings by Subject, with 28 positions in the ranking overall. The school has three campuses, with its main campus in Penang, its health campus in Kelantan and its engineering campus in Nibong Tibal. The school also has plans to open a global campus in the capital.

Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM)

Also ranked among the world’s top 250 universities is Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), which is ranked joint 187th and located in Johor Bahru.  The oldest public engineering and technology university in the country, UTM specializes in technical studies and offers a comprehensive engineering division. This is reflected in the subject rankings, in which it appears 14 times, including in the top 100 for architecture and several branches of engineering.  

Sumber: TopUniversiti