Abstract
The globalisation of economic development has increased the interdependence of Malaysia with its immediate neighbouring countries in the region and the world at large. For that interdependence to be meaningful to the country Malaysia has to have trained and more importantly, informed manpower to forward a Malaysian case to the rest of the world. In this regard, an important aspect that Malaysia needs to consider is not only for it to invest more in human resource development but also to plan for appropriate manpower training. The public universities in Malaysia, like UKM, have to play their part in helping to realise that manpower need. Essentially, the university should train trainable graduates flexible enough to apply their area of specialisation to the needs of the country and at the same time malleable enough to be in the position to make quick adjustment to the changing market needs of the time brought about by the globalisation of development. Herein perhaps lies the role of general education in shaping the manpower of the day This paper argues that the undergraduate training in social sciences and humanities in the Malaysian public university at present still requires the component of general education.
Highlights
The globalisation of economic development has increased the interdependence of Malaysia with its immediate neighbouring countries in the region and the world at large
In the present circumstances should social sciences and humanities programmes make adjustments to the new market conditions? If there is a need for adjustment how should social sciences and humanities reposition themselves sc that they can become parts of the main, players in the new market? Commentaries in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s on the state of the academia worldwide have summed up the increasing inability of established universities to move with the new market changes
Accepting the characteristics demanded by the society of executives at present, as they have been outlined earlier, and to sustain them through in the few decades, programmes of studies in the social sciences and humanities today and in time to come have to consider more inputs
Summary
The globalisation of economic development has increased the interdependence of Malaysia with its immediate neighbouring countries in the region and the world at large. For that interdependence to be meaningful to the country Malaysia has to have trained and more importantly, informed manpower to forward a Malaysian case to the rest of the world. In this regard, an important aspect that Malaysia needs to consider is for it to invest more in human resource development and to plan for appropriate manpower training. Implicit in the new demand for manpower is the need for repositioning the academia and its programme structure and orientation in order to provide the necessary education and training for the people. Technical and technological based programmes, such as business management, international trade, information system and law seem to be increasingly preferred by the consumers of education since the market has placed more demand on people with such knowledge and skill
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