Rebecca Rajaendram

3 weeks ago | thestar.com.my | Rebecca Rajaendram

PETALING JAYA: A Malaysian university has entered the top 50 Asian universities for the first time, according to the Times Higher Education (THE) Asia University Rankings 2025. Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP) has climbed nine places to 43rd in Asia, sharing the rank with South Korea's Hanyang University. Meanwhile, Universiti Malaya (UM) moves up one spot to 64th, making it the country’s second highest-ranked institution.

3 weeks ago | thestar.com.my | Rebecca Rajaendram |Yuen Meikeng

ALMOST three-quarters (72.4%) of Malaysia’s health and welfare sector comprise female graduates, making it the most women-dominated field in the country (see infographic). Women, according to the World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Gender Gap 2024 Insight Report, also make up the majority of graduates in natural sciences, mathematics and statistics, education as well as arts and humanities.

3 weeks ago | thestar.com.my | Yuen Meikeng |Rebecca Rajaendram

PETALING JAYA: Female engineers are quite a rare group in Malaysia, making up only 27% of graduates in the field. But while women are the minority in the profession, the situation is improving. Data from the Institution of Engineers Malaysia (IEM) shows that there’s a higher portion of women in their ranks today - from 20% of members in 2022, women in IEM now make up 25% as of March this year.

1 month ago | thestar.com.my | Rebecca Rajaendram

PETALING JAYA: Ku Klux Klan (KKK) costumes were part of an assignment to instil critical thinking and raise awareness on human rights issues at the international level, says Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM). The university said the students chose to present issues related to racial discrimination and hatred based on skin colour, which are among the human rights violations that have occurred in several countries.

1 month ago | thestar.com.my | Rebecca Rajaendram

HOW well students perform in their studies hinges significantly on their socioeconomic backgrounds. The correlation may seem like a given, but results from two of the most recent global benchmarking studies reveal just how stark the reality is. According to the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2023, students from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds scored, on average, 67 points lower than their peers from high SES backgrounds.