Edited by Rivermore Academy
As a Malaysian, you would definitely have heard of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM); and if you are a foreigner, you might have also heard of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), which ranks among the top two hundred in the QS ranking and has been consistently rated as a five-star university in the QS rating.
But, have you heard of UTMSPACE?
What is UTMSPACE?
Let's start with a clear conclusion: UTMSPACE is a faculty under the umbrella of UTM.
In 1992, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) proposed the establishment of a School of Professional and Continuing Education to the Ministry of Education, and the proposal received approval from the Malaysian Ministry of Education the same year. Consequently, the School of Professional and Continuing Education, also known as UTMSPACE, was officially launched in 1993, with the establishment of its first faculty in the state of Johor.
Differing from other faculties within UTM, UTMSPACE is dedicated to providing lifelong education for working professionals in society. This initiative aims to create an alternative pathway for education, thus contributing to the nation's pool of high-quality talents. The establishment of UTMSPACE has provided countless individuals who, due to various reasons, were forced to deviate from mainstream education, the opportunity to reengage in learning and enhance their skills and knowledge.
By the year 2000, owing to the growing demand for continuing education, UTMSPACE became a benchmark for other higher education institutions in advocating lifelong learning. Many of these institutions collaborated with UTMSPACE to offer continuing education courses for numerous working professionals with educational needs.
Are the diplomas awarded by UTM and UTMSPACE the same?
Firstly, it needs to be clarified that the educational objectives offered by UTM are primarily targeted at students under the age of 20, while UTMSPACE aims to cater to working professionals aged 21 and above. Consequently, the diplomas awarded by UTMSPACE differ from the academic diplomas offered by UTM.
If we consider the aspect of diploma names, let's take the example of the "Diploma" credential: UTM awards a Diploma, whereas UTMSPACE confers a Professional Diploma.
The addition of the term "Professional" does make a difference. How so? Let's take "Diploma" as an example:
| Type of Diplomas | Differences |
1 | Diploma |
|
2 | Professional Diploma |
|
Is taking courses with "Professional" a good idea?
Once again, we reiterate: UTMSPACE is a faculty under the umbrella of UTM.
As a renowned institution for providing high-quality courses, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) has various faculties under its administration, ensuring continuous oversight of course quality. UTMSPACE is naturally no exception.
As for other higher education institutions, their certificates also require UTMSPACE's endorsement in order to issue Professional Diplomas or Professional MBAs bearing the UTMSPACE seal. Hence, these higher education institutions must also adhere to UTMSPACE's supervision and regulations to ensure that course quality, content requirements, and learning assessments align with the respective standards.
This is why courses labelled as "Professional," even without MQA accreditation, can be held in the same regard as accredited courses. They might even be more suitable for working professionals, as the curriculum and certificates are tailored to their needs.
Since UTMSPACE aims to encourage working professionals to pursue further education, the admission process is relatively flexible. It doesn't solely adhere to the mainstream academic criteria but also considers work experience as an admission factor.
These admission standards and curriculum arrangements are designed to meet the needs of working professionals. This approach enables individuals in the workforce to pursue studies alongside their jobs, graduate in a shorter time frame, and obtain qualifications from UTMSPACE.
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