THE failure of a local university to obtain accreditation for more than 20 of its courses has left about 800 foreign and local students in the dark over the validity of their academic certificates.

Two student representatives took their grouses against Limkokwing University (LKWU) to DAP and youth movement Muda today, raising concerns that the university has not obtained accreditation by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) and the revocation of accreditation for various existing courses.

The Malaysian Insight has contacted LKWU and is awaiting its response.

The two, Muhammad Ameer Fakhri and Muhammed, were representing the master’s degree and PhD students of the university.

“We, the students, are about to embark on our professional careers with great uncertainty and fear,” they said.

Numerous bachelor, Master of Business Administration and doctorate courses have had their accreditations revoked by the MQA as LKWU could not fulfil certain requirements and standards set by relevant authorities, they said.

“As a professional educational institution, it is LKWU’s responsibility to ensure the accreditation of the courses. However, for the past few years, it is the students who have been chasing the university management for answers,” they said.

“So far, our efforts bear no fruit and we have only been given false promises and hollow assurances.”

Under the MQA, when a course has lost accreditation, it will not be certified by the Ministry of Higher Education and in the event that it is certified but not accredited, a certificate or degree will not be useful for students seeking employment or further education.

Muhammad said during his first semester in the Bachelor of Computer Science programme, LKWU approached him to switch his course to cloud computing technology, citing better job opportunities.

However, he said, the university had failed to inform him that the degree was not awarded full accreditation.

“As with the case of many bachelor’s students, they were not made aware of the accreditation status of their degree,” he said, adding that the degree in question is the Bachelor of Computing Science in Cloud Computing Technology.

“These students enrolled in this course only to discover in their last semester that it has not gained full accreditation.”

The students said without accreditation from the MQA, their degrees are not recognised locally and internationally.

“This means that our tuition fees and time spent studying, between three and five years for different courses, have all been in vain,” Muhammad said, adding the students are now at risk of not finding proper employment.

Muhammed, an international student at LKWU, said the course he took was initially recognised, but the accreditation was revoked a year later in 2020.

“It was only during my last semester that I found out the university failed to get accreditation. They told me that I can finish the course, but without accreditation,” he said.

“The university management told me to get another certificate, but they do not know what programme we should take.”

He said the university attracts hundreds of foreign students every year, but withholds information regarding the credibility of its courses.

LKWU’s foreign students affected by this are worried that their degrees will not be accepted in their home countries as they will not be considered equivalent by their local education ministries and private employers.

“This means that they will not be able to apply for jobs in the private or government sectors to commensurate with the level of their education,” said Muhammed.

Also present at today’s event were Ong Kian Ming (Bangi MP), Teo Nie Ching (Kulai MP), Syahredzan Johan (political secretary to Lim Kit Siang), Teoh Lee Ken (policy coordinator for Muda), Zayd Shaukat Ali (secretary, Muda Selangor), Raymond Kwan (Bangi DAPSY chief).

Teo, who is a former deputy education minister, said when a university does not receive full accreditation for a course by the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE), it is only right for the university to reapply for accreditation, which LKWU allegedly ignored following instructions from the MQA.

She said a university course will only be accredited after going through several assessments, such as quality of syllabus and staff qualification, of which MOHE can withhold its accreditation if the assessment is found unsatisfactory.

In a case like this, Teo said, MOHE can either instruct the students to change universities and apply for the same course or switch to a different course. However, the funds have to be borne by the university.

Syahredzan, who is a lawyer, said the students are hoping for an amicable resolution. However, they would consider a class action suit if the matter is left unresolved.

Meanwhile, LKWU told the students that those due to graduate in June/July will be given a special approval stamp from MOHE. However, this stamp will not guarantee the accreditation needed.

The university has also asked for more time to resolve the issue and said it would issue an assurance letter to the students, which has not been done.

The students have also been advised by the MQA to forward their complaints to MOHE as well as for international students to contact their respective embassies to get in touch with the prime minister. – May 3, 2021.