Editor on the Field

Interview with The University of Nottingham (Malaysia Campus) – Ten Years On

The academic year 2010-2011 marks ten years of success for The University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus. In 2000, Nottingham became the first British university to open a campus overseas. Partnering Boustead and YTL, it has since grown to be a campus driven by enthusiasm, energy and commitment to being research intensive.

Here, StudyMalaysia (SM) talks to:

Professor David Greenaway, Vice-Chancellor of The University of Nottingham	Professor Chris Rudd, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research Knowledge Transfer) of The University of Nottingham

Professor Ian Pashby, CEO/Vice-President of The University of Nottingham (Malaysia Campus)	Professor Sayed Azam-Ali, Vice-President (Research), The University of Nottingham (Malaysia Campus)

SM: Can you share with us the challenges Nottingham has faced during the last 10 years?
David: The challenge was coming here in the first instance because setting up a campus 6000 miles from home was an unusual thing for a university to do. We were encouraged to do it partly because we were persuaded that this country was very serious about becoming an educational hub for the region and partly because we found very good partners in Boustead.

So the first challenge was persuading people back in Nottingham UK that this was a good thing to do, and persuading some of them to not just believe that it was a good thing to do, but to come out here and do it. And that includes people like Ian and Sayed who are seconded here from the UK.

Then it was gradually persuading the Malaysian community that this is a very serious enterprise, and that the university is of very high standards – the standards that are set and maintained in the UK are brought across and set and maintained here in Malaysia. That means that the quality of graduates here are of the same quality as those in the UK.

The other challenge was to develop research capacity at the same time we were developing teaching programmes. We expect our academics not only to be excellent teachers but also first-class researchers, working on problems that we can solve make a difference to the world in which we live.

SM: What are Nottingham’s plans from this point onwards?
Ian: Talking about going forward, we started with just three programmes – Business, Computer Science and Electronic Engineering and 70 students. After five years we had more than a thousand students and presently, there are more than 3,500 students. And the expansion will continue. We have 16 new degree courses starting in September this year with two completely new schools, i.e. the School of Economics and the School of Social Science and International Relations. So, it’s not just expansion but we are also diversifying. We are looking at possibly two more new schools to be established next year and some of the options we are considering are pharmaceutical science and medicine. These are very exciting times and we plan to have an enrolment of up to 6000 students in 2015.

SM: What’s the most memorable event for you during your time here?
David: My most memorable experience was the formal opening of the campus in September 2005. Dato’ Seri Najib who was the Deputy Prime Minister then was present for the official opening. It was a wonderful sunny day and there was a real sense of excitement. There had been a lot of planning for some time and to see it occupied with staff and students and to think about its potential made it a great day.

SM: It has been the policy of the Malaysian government to invite more foreign institutions to set up branches in Malaysia. How do you view this and do you think that this competition could pose a threat to Nottingham?
Ian: I think the difference is that we have a very strong base in research. Other institutions may come and set up branches here but we believe that we will still be a step ahead in terms of our research and international standing.

David: Competition keeps you on your toes, so we are not unduly worried about more competition.

Sayed: It’s a very vibrant market. Having more institutions would make Malaysia more recognised as a tertiary education destination and subsequently, raise Malaysia’s profile and ours as well. Our advantage over other institutions would be that we would have at least a 10 year head start.

Christopher: It’s important to realise that being a great university is not just about giving students a great education and a great experience. It’s also about driving the economy. We drive the regional economy in the UK, and to a certain extent in Malaysia. We are not only bringing academic programmes - we are bringing research, commercialisation, inventions and innovation; and making important impact in terms of commercialisation, impact in the community as well as government policy.

These are the things you can do when you come up with a comprehensive offer and you have got a broad-based campus activity. If you just build a franchise teaching programme, you cannot deliver any of that.

SM: Besides commercialisation, what else can we look forward to in Nottingham’s research in Malaysia?
Christopher: One issue with research done at universities in general is that they may conduct research that is unrelated to the industry or commercial demands. At Nottingham, we answer ‘why’ questions with what our commercial partners want. We have a lot of discussions with commercial companies and have research programmes with them rather than a one-time research project. We have a long term embedded relationship with the private sector.

Our research is not just about making money, thought that’s also important, but we do things that make an impact, whether it is societal impact or financial impact. It’s about doing something that makes a difference, something that is world-changing.

SM: What can Malaysia do to be globalised and be recognised as a centre of educational excellence?
Sayed: According to an MEF survey, the three points that were identified as to why graduates were difficult to employ were poor communication skills, inability to think out of the box, and the lack of soft skills which I believe what was meant was management skills, e.g. the ability to manage projects. English is a natural language of communication for students who undertake research projects and need to hold discussions to solve problems. As such, it is also an important skill for students to have.

David: Another thing I would add to that is that it does take investment to build research capacity and a reputation for high quality research – you need the right people and then the right facilities. It takes focused investment to be internationally competitive and attract high quality researchers to work in Malaysia.

SM: Are there any more plans for Nottingham to set up campuses in other parts of the world?
David: There are no more plans for Nottingham to set up campuses in other countries. As a university, we will continue to develop University of Nottingham in Malaysia with our partners. We will also continue to develop Nottingham University in China and the UK... and that is big enough an agenda.

Interviewed was conducted on 19-5-2010 by StudyMalaysia