Journalism Education in Private Higher Learning Institutions in Malaysia: Factors Affecting Undergraduates’ Choice

Abstract

In the current digitally-networked era, journalism schools worldwide,
especially those in developing countries are gearing towards offering
courses to cater to evolving market demands and needs. In this
context, there is a growing concern, especially among private higher
learning institutions in Malaysia on whether to continue offering
journalism or provide other courses within mass communication
studies. This paper looks at private universities in Malaysia to explore
on factors affecting students’ choice when opting for journalism
studies. It aims at verifying if there is a need to conceptualize new
ways of imparting journalism education in these institutions. The
study employed quantitative research method on 300 respondents
from five private universities that offered journalism studies. The
preliminary research findings showed that 51% preferred non-journalism courses while 49% pursued journalism at degree and
diploma levels. Among the strong reasons cited for students’
reluctance to pursue journalism education in Malaysia were their
dejection on the country’s inhibitory laws on freedom of expression,
fear that journalists were exposed to physical arm, and lack of
language competency to meet journalistic writing skills. The study,
which also looked at preferences based on gender, found that female
students were keener to specialize in journalism. Opportunities to
socialize and educate the public on various issues affecting the society
were found to attract students into journalism studies. While there are
widespread research interests in journalism worldwide, this study
hopes to track down important elements undergraduates, especially
from those coming from a developing country like Malaysia, look for
when opting for journalism studies. It is also hoped it will help
provide recommendations to formulate proper curriculum for
journalism educators.

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