Go Global students meet Malaysian Minister

Dato' Seri Haji Idris Jusoh, Minister of Higher Education, met informally with a group of 40 such students who talked about the new cultural experiences and opportunities to travel and meet new people which they were enjoying while simultaneously continuing their Heriot-Watt studies at the Malaysia campus.

     

This dialogue is important in the Malaysian government’s quest to attract 200,000 international students to the country by 2020. Malaysia currently has 151,979 students from 165 countries studying in the country.

Dato’ Seri Idris thanked Heriot-Watt for developing the Go Global programme, which encourages European students to come to Malaysia to study and support the local economy. He also spoke to their Malaysian classmates and was happy to learn that they were showing them what Malaysian hospitality is all about by bringing them back to their homes for festivities.

     

One of the outcomes from the dialogue sessions was to for the Ministry to look seriously at easing regulations for foreign students to undertake internships in Malaysian companies which would open the door for them to work in Malaysia for up to two years after they have graduated.

The students unanimously agreed that the campus transfer programme and the support they received to undertake it is something they would recommend to their peers. “It’s a brilliant chance to see and experience another country, meet great new people, travel and study. My time here has exceeded all expectations and is proving to be a really worthwhile experience,” said one of the students, Charlie Posnett.