Education needs to evolve, says expert after more youths say no to tertiary studies

SHAH ALAM - Education needs to evolve as more youths are interested in becoming online influencers instead of following the traditional path of education.

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) Faculty of Education Prof Madya Dr Hasnah Toran said tertiary education needs to evolve and the main objective of tertiary education is to work on the growth of knowledge, broadening the borders of knowledge.

“However, academicians need to remember that students enroll in universities based on economic needs, their academia needs to align its traditional roles with the economic needs of students.

“Academicians need to think of the employability of the courses they offer, especially in light of the changes in our world, namely the impact of information and communication technology (ICT).

“This is a sign that academia is failing in terms of convincing our youths that tertiary education could help them earn better as half a million graduates are unemployed and others are under-employed.

“So youths look around and see that graduates are not earning at par with the level of their education,” she expressed.

Influencer and cctor Khaled M Khairil Anwar who is also known as Khaled said he took Foundation in Business and feels like everyone should be allowed to dream big with their goals but they also need to be realistic.

“I have always wanted to be an actor since I was a kid but it’s never about fame though, I just love how actors could bring these characters to life.

“I did my foundation as well, so that in the future if I can focus on my studies if plan A fails, it wouldn’t take as much time....in fact I dropped out of my degree last year.

“In this modern times, almost everyone has a degree but don’t let a piece of paper define you,” he said Khaled who has moe than 9,000 followers on Instagram said hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard. “My advice is to always know what you want to do in life and once you know what you want to do, focus and give your all to it.

“It’s a competitive world we live in, so never give up and you have to be realistic and give it some time,” he said.

He added it could take maybe a couple of months for some and years for others, so always have a backup plan as well as things might go south.

“Personally, furthering my studies is just not for me....it didn’t help me excel in what I’m doing right now but it could help a lot of people become great doctors, engineers, physicians and so on.

“Tertiary education could help by giving credibility in the field you are in,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ong Kai Xuan who is also known as Cabibi said in Malaysia pursuing higher education is still important.

“I am currently pursuing a degree in mass communication and in my opinion if they are confident in their career in content creation, then not pursuing their studies would not be a big problem but if becoming an influencer is just a desire that they have in their minds, they shouldn’t give up on their education for that.

“To be honest, I don’t think my tertiary education has helped me much in work or my daily life but it does push me to be more self-disciplined in terms of balancing work and studies. Cabibi who has 40,000 followers on Instagram said it was important to find something that you love and keep doing it.

"I think as long as it brings you joy, you will be on the right path,” she said