Malaysian universities no longer among Asia’s top 100

Universities in Malaysia need to step up their teaching and research methods if they wish to establish a strong reputation as globally competitive academic institutions.

Not a single university in Malaysia made the cut to this year’s Times Higher Education (THE) top 200 global rankings.

The report ranks world class universities across all of their core missions, including teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international outlook.

Malaysia’s universities encountered a significant drop from last year’s ranking where Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) at least made it to Asia’s top 100 list at 87th spot.

This was despite the fact that 2014 was highlighted as a strong year for Asian universities, with six Asian institutions making it to the top 50 global list, up from five last year.

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Japan’s University of Tokyo led the Asian list, with a score of 76.4 out of 100, followed by National University of Singapore (72.4).

Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University also continued its upward climb and was ranked 11^th in Asia.

America’s California Institute of Technology led the global list as the best university in the world, with a score of 94.9.

Harvard University and Oxford followed respectively, tied in with a score of 93.9.

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"In general, this year’s tables are marked by their stability," said Phil Baty, editor of the Times Higher Education Rankings.

"The California Institute of Technology holds on to top spot for the third year in a row; the same institutions make up the top 10 as last year (albeit with some changes in the pecking order); there is minimal movement among the world’s top 30; and the two rankings powerhouses, the US and the UK, experience little overall movement at the national level."

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