Overseas recruitment

It's a small start but at least it's a start. Tok Pa, Minister of Higher Education, "said as a result of his ministry’s headhunting mission in Britain last month, 24 promising candidates have been identified, including 14 medical specialists".

From the same Star report:

Mustapa said the Government has agreed to provide higher salaries for lecturers with PhDs to attract the best brains to public universities.

It is understood that new lecturers with PhD qualifications will be placed on the Grade 51 scale (which pays about RM5,000 monthly with allowances) instead of the current Grade 45.

Hopefully, this headhunting trip will actually lead to these 24 individuals returning to Malaysia. We would probably like to know a more detailed background of the 24 candidates (qualifications, field, race, etc...) but for now, the fact that the MOHE is taking a pro-active approach towards recruitment is certainly a positive thing.

I've not heard of this organization before but in the same report,

Malaysian Academics Movement (Move) chairman Dr Wan Manan Wan Muda welcomed the move but added that more needs to be done.

“It will not improve matters if the promotion and award system in universities is not improved.

“You can headhunt for the best brains, but they will not stay if they have to work under heads who are not qualified.”

I'll try to look them up to see what they are doing to make the promotion system in our public universities more transparent.