Businesses urged to co-sponsor postgraduate research to boost Malaysia’s R&D talent
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia should make postgraduate research a more accessible mid-career pathway for engineers, scientists and technologists already in the workforce, said University of Nottingham Malaysia Research and Knowledge Exchange Vice Provost Prof Dr Shahir Liew.
He said the approach could help strengthen Malaysia’s pool of researchers, scientists, engineers and technologists without having to rely solely on producing more fresh STEM graduates.
READ MORE: 326,000 STEM students, but where are Malaysia’s future researchers?
Shahir said according to the Higher Education Ministry’s December 2025 data, postgraduate enrolment remains comparatively low, accounting for around 9% of total higher education enrolment or approximately 114,600 students of which 33.74% were international students.
“Malaysia’s postgraduate research pipeline currently depends significantly on imported talent rather than Malaysians moving into research careers at scale.”
Shahir said postgraduate study should be viewed not only as a way to gain higher qualifications but also as a pathway for experienced professionals to develop research capabilities and contribute to innovation.
He said Malaysia should therefore invest more in flexible, part-time and industry-embedded postgraduate research programmes for working professionals.
“Converting experienced engineers, scientists, and technologists already in the workforce into research-ready talent builds capacity from within, tapping into talents who are already qualified, employed and familiar with local industry needs.”
He said the admissions criteria should recognise substantial industry experience as preparation for research, while universities could allow professionals to develop research projects around real problems encountered in their workplaces.
He added that such an approach could allow a workplace problem to become a thesis question while ensuring that the research has practical value for industry.
Shahir said creating the programmes alone would not be enough as working professionals currently have limited incentives to pursue postgraduate research.
“Employer-sponsored research degrees and government-industry co-funding schemes can help reduce financial and professional barriers.”
He also proposed linking Malaysia’s lifelong-learning and micro-credential initiatives more directly to postgraduate research.
“Most micro-credentials today are designed to build employability and help professionals stand out among peers but few are designed to lead towards a research qualification.”
He said a more integrated system would allow professionals to build research capability at their own pace while creating a clearer pathway into research-intensive roles.
“Industry involvement will also be crucial, with employers potentially co-sponsoring employees’ part-time postgraduate research tied to real business R&D needs.”
Shahir said such a model could benefit both sides by giving professionals a pathway to advance their expertise while allowing companies to obtain research relevant to their operations.
