The Global Pandemic and Challenges for Tertiary Education in Malaysia

The global pandemic and subsequent series of movement control orders (MCOs) imposed by the Malaysian government have severely impacted the tertiary education sector comprising both public and private universities in Malaysia. Private colleges and universities in Malaysia now face increased financial pressures as enrolments of students have either been cancelled outright or deferred. Whilst full-time employees in the tertiary education sector face additional pressures to handle these disruptions, contractual staff members face the risk of unemployment resulting from the non-renewal of their existing teaching contracts. Even if some of these classes can be moved online, challenges remain; for example, scientific research and classes that require physical access to laboratories for the conduct of experiments will be impacted.