A view of the MMU campus in Malacca. 
Prof Zaharin says that universities should focus on research and development projects THE country needs to revamp the information and communication technology (ICT) industry if it wants to stay relevant and become an information technology (IT) hub.
Multimedia University (MMU) president Prof Dr Zaharin Yusoff says the best way forward is for Malaysia to move away from being an IT-consumer nation and become an IT-producing nation.
It will then put Malaysia on par with other developed nations such as the United States (US), Japan and France as the country will be exporting its own software and applications.
“By then, we will stand the chance of having our own equivalent of Microsoft and Oracle, ” he says.
However, the MMU president admits that it may take some time for Malaysia to become a leading IT-producing nation until investments are available to develop IT products. Insufficient human capital in ICT, he shares, is also another factor which hampers the development of the industry.
Prof Zaharin adds that the launch of the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) in the 1990s created a hype and interest among students who suddenly were keen on pursuing higher education in ICT.
However, he laments that more IT graduates are working in other sectors compared to those who are servicing the ICT industry.
“The cause of this problem could be traced to the supply-demand mismatch in the human capital needs of the ICT industry and the skills of the crop of IT graduates rolled out by the universities and colleges.
“There was a misconception among the tertiary institutions then regarding the type of graduates actually needed by the industry,” he adds.
On hindsight, Prof Zaharin says more courses on computing or computer science should be offered instead of IT programmes which are product specific.
“This is to prevent the graduates from becoming ‘helpless’ when the products and tools used in the said programmes become obsolete,” he says.
He reveals that MMU, together with a few public universities, have decided to put an end to this problem by re-tuning the curriculum of their IT programmes.
R&D roadmap
Nevertheless, Prof Zaharin stresses that the effort of restructuring the curriculum of the IT courses is still not sufficient to propel the country into becoming an IT-producing nation.
“Universities should focus on research and development (R&D) and develop a R&D technology roadmap to give the ICT industry a boost,” he says.
Being the premier institution in IT studies, MMU is spearheading the initiative to work out a R&D technology roadmap with the support from government agencies and industry players.
“The roadmap will identify the direction that the ICT industry is moving into, besides laying the groundwork for R&D on ICT products and applications which will be produced by the industry, ” says Prof Zaharin.
He explains that the strength of a university lies in its R&D effort and his vision is to inculcate the R&D culture at the varsity.
For a start, he says MMU’s academic staff have a reduced teaching load so that they have more time to carry out research.
“Lectures will be made more real and interesting when the academic staff bring students’ attention to elements of their R&D work.
He adds that the students are not left behind as they are also actively involved in the R&D projects, gaining hands-on experience that will prepare them to serve in the ICT industry.
To complete the spectrum of R&D exposure to students, Prof Zaharin says the university is gearing towards commercialising its R&D projects.
“Through commercialism of such projects in IT, students can observe how technopreneurs and the ICT industry work,” he says.
Riding on the strength of the R&D culture, the university has centres of excellence which will be offering niche programmes such as knowledge management technology, a course which encompasses artificial intelligence and high-performance computing.
“Currently, there are special interest groups in every faculty and MMU is well-known for its specialisation in robotics,” says Prof Zaharin.
Other niche programmes in the pipeline include health informatics focusing on wellness, and laws which touch on the legal aspects that arise when technology crosses borders.
“The university is also planning to offer Sports Science with special focus on badminton,” says the MMU president.
Upcoming programme
With 4,500 international students coming from 79 countries, MMU is a melting pot of cultures that is very much alive and vibrant.
“The students bring an international flavour to the university and they love to perform,” says Prof Zaharin.
The university, he adds is planning to venture out its technology and business domain by offering a course in Experiential Performance Arts..
Prof Zaharin explains that it is a programme which marries creativity with IT.
“The course is something like Sports Science analysis in which technology is utilised to enhance the performance of the athletes or artistes,” he shares adding that this course will be handled by both the Faculty of IT and Faculty of Creative Multimedia.
On other future plans by MMU, Prof Zaharin says the university hopes to expand its global footprint by exporting its programmes overseas.
“It is not just internationalisation within the campus but also beyond,” he adds.
Currently, MMU exports its programmes to countries such as Iran, Kenya and Sudan.
MMU was ranked as a tier five university which is equivalent to “excellent status” in the Setara rating released by the Higher Education Ministry recently.
“We believe that it is our strength in R&D which had given us the extra edge in being ranked as one of the top institutions of higher learning in the country,” says Prof Zaharin.
Multimedia University is a contributor to the Star Education Fund.
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