AIMST SPEARHEADING BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH

THE Malaysian Government is committed towards the development of the biotech industry and development of human resources.
Biotechnology has been identified as an engine of growth to help the nation achieve developed nation status by 2020.
AIMST University is well aware of the importance of biotech industry development in Malaysia and the region.
In line with current trends, it is working to enhance the strength of its biotechnology department.
The Department of Biotechnology, which comes under Faculty of Applied Sciences, offers BSc (Hons) in Biotechnology and MSc in Biotechnology.


Last year, it began the PhD programme in biotechnology. To attract students, AIMST University is offering a new fee structure. For both the MSc and PhD programme, the tuition fees per semester is RM2,750 (excluding other basic fees). Currently, 200 students are studying for their BSc and 10 for the MSc.
Research focuses on rapid molecular diagnostics, biosensors, molecular microbiology, in vitro conservation, abiotic stress in plants, leech biology and molecular identification, tissue and cell culture, bioprocess technology, plant genetic transformation, fish breeding for propagation and conservation, nutritional requirements of fishes, medicinal plants and bioprospecting, bioinformatics, and plastic and oil degrading consortia of microorganisms.
The university established an "Advanced Molecular Biology Laboratory" (AMBL) at a cost of RM6 million recently. AMBL has the latest infrastructure facilities with high-end equipment to carry out research in biotechnology.
Recent achievements include isolation of the thermophilic bacteria from hot springs. This is promising research for production of industrially important enzymes.

In order to foster biotechnology towards a sustainable environment, AIMST has also isolated plastic and oil degrading bacterial strains and also obtained value-added products such as cystine aminoacids from chicken feather waste.

The university is making sure faculty staff are world class to maintain the quality of students and capability to undertake research.
For example, the faculty includes well-known scientists like Prof M. Ravichandran, who is internationally known for his contribution in the areas of the cholera vaccine, genetic engineering and gene mutation in bacteria, simple cold chain free molecular diagnostics and electrochemical biosensors, and Prof P. Kangueane, who is specialised in bioinformatics and is the founder of the Bioinformation journal.
Collaboration and smart partnerships are always important to achieve goals. AIMST University has signed several memorandums of understanding with biotech companies and other universities.
The Biotech companies include INFOVALLEYTM Group of Companies, Olipro Biotechnology Sdn Bhd, Hirudogenesis Biotechnology Sdn Bhd, Clarias Sdn Bhd and Tentacle Technologies (MSC) Sdn Bhd. Malaysia's apex university, Universiti Sains Malaysia, is also among one of the smart collaborators.
By realising the strength of the Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Applied Sciences and AIMST University as a whole, Kedah has appointed AIMST University as a lead consultant to complete the task of "Biotechnology roadmap development for Kedah". The technology roadmap drafted will be launched by Kedah state government today.
AISMT University is focused on spearheading the development of biotechnology in the northern corridor of Malaysia.

- New Strait Times, by by ProQuest Information and Learning Company -
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OPEN UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA STRIKES RIGHT CHORD IN DISTANCE LEARNING

ENCOURAGING lifelong learning, which is one of the strategic thrusts outlined in the National Higher Education Strategic Plan, is aimed at creating a knowledgeable workforce that will help transform the country into a developed nation by 2020.
Malaysians need to equip themselves with the necessary knowledge, skills and competencies to face future challenges and current demands.
In light of this, efforts are being carried out to increase provisions of lifelong learning programmes and opportunities through institutions of higher learning, community colleges and learning centres throughout the country.



As the country's leading open and distance learning institution, Open University Malaysia (OUM) is at the forefront of lifelong learning by providing Malaysians a second chance in pursuing higher education, either for personal gratification or to attain better academic qualification.
By leveraging on technology, OUM is able to provide quality teaching and learning.
Head of e-Learning, OUM's Institute for Teaching and Learning Advancement, Assoc Prof Dr Safiah Md Yusof, says that since the bulk of learners are working adults who are not able to attend classes in the conventional sense, they are exposed to the blended mode of learning which relies heavily on self-managed learning.
"They meet with tutors for face-to-face tutorials several times throughout the semester and they also have the benefit of learning from their peers and e-tutors through the online forums."

Aside from developing and using its own learning management system, known as myVLE (my Virtual Learning Environment), the university is constantly raising the bar and improving on its e- learning practices to better support its learners.
The university's digital library boasts of an extensive digital collection of e-books and e-journals which learners can have access to, irrespective of their location.
The introduction of e-schedules, on the other hand, helps guide learners with their activities. E-schedules are weekly outlines of the activities expected of the learners which include readings, online activities and topics for online forum discussions.
Dr Safiah says learners also benefit from the university's online learning resources, such as the Math Resource Centre (MRC), e-Gate (Gateway for learning English), and Open Educational Resources (OER). Learners can access the resources anytime they are online.
OUM's efforts in promoting lifelong learning in this country are well-acknowledged.
The university is privileged to co-organise the forthcoming International Conference of Lifelong Learning (ICLLL2011) together with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and the Ministry of Higher Education.
Dr Safiah, who is also the Conference Committee in charge of Posters, says the conference is an excellent platform for experts, researchers, academics, practitioners, policymakers and lifelong learners to share their perspectives, experiences, research findings, and to discuss current issues and challenges pertaining to lifelong learning.

The conference, to be held at the Seri Pacific Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, from Nov 14 to 15, welcomes participants, both locally and abroad.

- New Strait Times, by ProQuest Information and Learning Company -
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UNIMAS UPGRADES ITS INTERNET ACCESS CAPACITY

THE increased application of information communications technology is one of the cornerstones of the Educational Development Masterplan 2006-2010 under the Ninth Malaysia Plan.
In line with this, Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) has signed an agreement with Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) to implement a major upgrade of UNIMAS' Internet leased line capacity from the current 8Mbps to 34Mbps by June 1.
This increase in Internet access capacity will meet the administration, study and research requirements of 7,500 UNIMAS students and staff.
TM has been the primary Internet connectivity provider to UNIMAS since 2003, and currently provides its tmnet direct solution to UNIMAS via a dedicated link.





UNIMAS was TM's first tmnet direct customer among institutions of higher learning in the country.
Founded in 1992, UNIMAS is the eighth public university in Malaysia and the first in Sarawak. It currently hosts 19 faculties, institutes and centres in a wide variety of study and research areas, including computer science and information technology, resource science and technology, as well as biodiversity and environmental conservation.

- New Strait Times,  by ProQuest Information and Learning Company -
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INTI's HOLISTIC BIOTECH PROGRAMME POPULAR

HUMAN blood proteins derived from plants. Spinal cord regeneration to cure paralysis. Stress-tolerant and higher yielding food crops. These are some of the marvels of biotechnology that may revolutionise biological sciences.
Biotechnology has been identified as a new engine of growth for the Malaysian economy. It is estimated that by 2020, this sector would create 280,000 jobs and generate US$75 billion (RM240 billion) in revenue.
A good place to start would be INTI International University's homegrown Bachelor of Biotechnology (Hons) programme that offers a holistic approach to learning, capped with a four-month internship with biotechnology and molecular biosciences companies.

Incorporated in the programme is sound training in the core molecular biosciences (biochemistry, genetics, microbiology, molecular biology and immunology), leading to the different areas of biotechnology.
Embedded within the programme are Soft Skills courses including Entrepreneurship, Personal Financial Planning Skills, Critical Thinking Skills and Employability Skills, and a Communicative Foreign Language course in Japanese, French or German.
Students who wish to acquire a degree from INTI's reputable partner universities overseas can choose to pursue one or two years of studies at INTI before transferring to top universities in Australia, New Zealand or the United Kingdom such as The University of Queensland, The University of New South Wales, The University of Adelaide, Massey University, The University of Southampton, Newcastle University and more.
INTI's Australian Degree Transfer Programme (Science) offers the most number of degrees and majors in biotechnology and life sciences under a single programme.

"I enjoyed my classes and laboratory sessions at INTI," said Choo Foong Lin, who graduated with First Class Honours degree in Biotechnology last year from The University of New South Wales.
"My lecturer was patient in explaining every aspect of the experiments and I had fun working with different bacterial cultures and carrying out various tests which made the lessons all the more interesting."
Alvin Teo Chen Kuang, who graduated from Northumbria University in 2008, had an equally enjoyable time at INTI.
"I really cherished my time at INTI, where we were given substantial laboratory practical training and elemental teaching of the life sciences core subjects. My UK lecturers were quite amazed with us INTI students as we actually out-performed the local students in several classes, especially in Genetics.
"Our INTI lecturers were very helpful and the structure of the Australian Degree Transfer Programme was very well organised," he said.
Moderated by The University of Adelaide, one of Australia's Group of Eight universities, the Australian Degree Transfer Programme (Science) introduces the basic sciences in chemistry and molecular and cell biology in Year 1, along with courses in mathematics, management and computing.
Upon this foundation, students proceed to Year 2 courses in biochemistry, genetics, microbiology and immunology or biotechnology, which are the cornerstone courses in biotechnology, molecular biosciences and biomedical sciences.
INTI International University is a member of the INTI Education Group, which in turn is a part of Laureate International Universities - the world's largest private education network.

- Malaysian Business Magazines, by ProQuest Information and Learning Company -
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UTHM EXPANDS NETWORK

IN A MOVE TO CONSOLIDATE operations and lower networking costs, Johor- based Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) has recently chosen 3Com's H3C S12500 data centre switching platform and Intelligent Management Center (IMC) to form the backbone of its next generation network infrastructure project.
The S12500 platform provides UTHM with unmatched price/ performance advantages, advanced services, higher port density and superior power consumption compared to competing products.
The new H3C S12500 high-end data centre core switch is built on a modern system architecture that delivers 2.2 billion packets per second (Bpps) of forwarding through a 6.6 Terabits per second (Tbps) non-blocking fabric, with up to 128 non-blocking 10-Gigabit or 864 non-blocking Gigabit Ethernet ports.
With the S12500 data center platform, UTHM will also enjoy up to 60 % less power consumption than competing products as certified by independent test services provider Miercom.
To manage and control the entire H3C data centre switching platform via a single pane of glass, UTHM will also implement the H3C IMC Enterprise Edition, 3Com's next-generation enterprise-class management platform.
`Extensive use of open standards and unified switching architecture means UTHM's platform can be extended to leverage next- generation technology support and easily design future-oriented applications, while providing investment protection for critical initiatives such as virtualisation and cloud computing,' says Marcus Lai, country manager, 3Com Malaysia.

- Malaysian Business Magazinez, by Mior Azhar -
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KLMU STUDENT GET FREE NOTEBOOKS

IT pays to work hard. Some 170 students from Kuala Lumpur Metropolitan University College (KLMU) were recently rewarded with free laptops for being model students.
These full-time students, who are in their second semester, received a Hewlett Packard/Compaq notebook worth RM3,000 each.
"To get the free notebook, students must have above average grades," says KLMU president Datuk Idrus Mohd Satha.
KLMU has given away 4,500 notebooks to its students from 13 branch campuses as part of its corporate social responsibility programme over the years.
KLMU was established in 2006 and is part of the Cosmopoint Group of Companies, which has 13 branches in Malaysia.

- New Strait Times, by Subashini Selvaratnam -
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BIG PLAYERS KEEP NILAI UNIVERSITY COLLEGE UP TO DATE

NILAI University College's School of Science and Technology offers a variety of programmes to entice the inquisitive and analytically-minded.
Nilai UC has been in operation since 1998 and has striven to attract experienced lecturers in order to fulfil its promise of a quality education.
Its School of Science and Technology has a dedicated block complete with laboratories and workshops. The Diploma in Aircraft Maintenance Engineering continues to set new standards and Nilai UC is already acknowledged as a market leader in this field.
Other programmes in the School include Bachelor of Computer Science (Hons); Bachelor of Information Technology (Hons); BSc (Hons) Biotechnology; Diploma in Business Information Technology; Diploma in Computer Science; Diploma in Electrical & Electronic Engineering; Diploma in Mechanical Engineering; Diploma in Mechanical Engineering (Automotive); Diploma in Mechatronics Engineering; Diploma in Biotechnology; BSc (Hons) in Electrical & Electronic Engineering; BSc (Hons) in Mechanical Engineering and BSc (Hons) in Mechanical Engineering (Automotive).
The latest addition to its academic staff is Dr Cheun Boon Song who has been appointed Dean of Nilai UC School of Science and Technology. Dr Cheun holds a PhD in Fluid Mechanics and has had two decade's worth of experience.
Dr Cheun joined Nilai UC's School of Science and Technology as he was very impressed with the array of programmes on offer.
"Each of the programmes has dedicated facilities and the administrators are serious about ensuring the programmes are relevant. For instance, the Biotechnology department has an Industry Advisory Panel consisting of representatives from some of the field's biggest players (such as InnoBio). They help ensure the syllabus is up-to-date and students are getting the right information and will enter the workforce fully prepared," he said.
He said the Diploma in Aircraft Maintenance Engineering, which is offered by the school, was one that excited him the most, as few institutions would build a hangar and have its own aircraft for its students to work on.
"One reason for this programme's success is that applicants and their parents can see the tangible efforts put into building the facilities. The European Aviation Safety Agency B1-1 licence is also a very enticing factor as it is an internationally-recognised qualification," he added.
"Of course, as a mechanical engineer myself, I must say I am very excited by the engineering degrees being offered at Nilai UC. I am a firm believer that engineers will always be in demand so long as society continues to evolve technologically. I can confidently say qualified and skilled engineers will be very much in demand for the foreseeable future," he said.
Nilai UC is located in the picturesque suburb of Putra Nilai.

- New Strait Times, by ProQuest Information and Learning Company -
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