The University of Macau (UM) yesterday unveiled its first-ever five-year development plan. The plan, spanning the current academic year (2021-2022) until 2025-2026, comprises five main strategies and measures focused on the development of the university, its students and faculty at the local, regional and international levels.
At a press conference organized by the university yesterday morning, Rector Yonghua Song explained that the goals of the university’s plan come directly from both the local government’s second five-year plan and the central government’s 14th five-year plan, conforming with the directions of those plans.
“In the next five years, UM will take the motto of ‘being rooted in Macau, taking part in the development of the Greater Bay Area, integrating into the nation and going international’ as its development positioning,” Song said, adding that the university aspires to “become an internationally recognized university of excellence by implementing quality student-centered education, key research subjects with international impact and a high standard of community services.”
To this end, Song said that UM aims to grow in both size and quality of education, with the enrollment of more students in existing programs as well in new programs to be launched by the university soon.
“In the next five years, UM’s total enrolment will increase from the current [level of] about 12,000 to about 17,000 students. The number of postgraduate students is also expected to grow steadily based on the demands of [community], and the undergraduate enrolment will remain largely stable,” Song said. He added that UM also aims to “enlarge the intake of non-local students, targeting mostly candidates from the mainland, in particular, the Greater Bay Area, and Southeast Asian countries, Portuguese-speaking countries, and countries and regions along the Belt and Road Initiative,” he said.
In response to media questions on the topic, Song explained that, although the university has a goal of enrolling more non-local students, this growth will be always capped to a maximum of 30% of the student population, with the proportion of local students to be maintained at or above 70%.
“The minimum proportion [for local students] is 70%. Usually, this percentage is dynamic, seating around 74 or 75%. If the percentage [of local students] is higher than 75%, we allow more non-local [students] to enroll. This is the condition [we abide by],” the Rector explained.
To increase the study program offerings for new students, UM is planning to establish a department of arts and design, which will offer master’s and doctoral programs in fine arts.
A bachelor’s degree program in Chinese law and global law (English-taught), a master’s program in philosophy and religious studies, and more cross-disciplinary courses in the humanities and social sciences are also on the cards for the university by 2025.
Although the plan is not yet released in full, the details provided so far announce that UM also plans to launch new disciplines in advanced materials, marine science and engineering, as well as launching a bachelor’s degree in pharmaceutical sciences and master’s programs in global public health, the internet of things, robotics and unmanned systems, and coastal and environmental engineering.
Serving local community
Another of UM’s major goals for the next five years is increasing the community’s access to the results of research and project development done by the university. The aim is to provide not only applications of the project output, but also to contribute to public recognition of the work at a local and international level, thereby raising the reputation of the institution, the Rector said.
This aim is expected to be achieved in part by the improvement of the “5-in-1” system for research innovation and results transfer, by consolidating and building a high-level industry-academia research platform incorporating the dimensions of innovation, service, management, cultivation and practice.
According to Song, “emphasis will be put on improving the quality and impact of the research achievements, systematically promoting technological innovation and research result transfer.”
The university also plans to capitalize on research platforms with outcomes that could be helpful in promoting Macau’s economic diversification.
This could be in the form of think tanks which will provide the government with accurate and up-to-date information and technical advice for problem-solving and enabling faster development.
UM tuition fee increase ‘not a problem’
The increase in tuition fees at the University of Macau (UM) over the past few years and specifically in this academic year is not discouraging the enrolment of new students, nor is it putting additional pressures on them, according to UM Rector Yonghua Song.
Questioned on the topic during a press conference held to present UM’s first five-year development plan, Song explained that the rise in tuition fees had been planned for some time and has been done progressively. It takes into account several factors, namely the fees of different institutions in Macau as well as the universities in the neighboring regions, he said.
Song said that UM enjoys a reputation for providing a quality education that is recognized beyond Macau’s borders, explaining that UM’s current tuition fees are still much lower than most mid-range universities, including in Hong Kong.
Noting that tuition fees do not, in many cases, cover the cost of course delivery, Song said that is only possible to continue providing the university’s quality of service due to government support through subsidies as well as scholarship programs and other protocols.
The Rector said that the competitiveness of UM’s tuition fees can also be seen in the number of candidates from outside Macau aiming to enroll in the university. In the current academic year, UM received 9,000 applications from non-local students competing for just 300 to 400 places.
Although tuition fees were raised from 30,000 patacas to 35,000 patacas in some cases, in Song’s view this increase looks “greater [as a percentage] because the baseline was too low.”
He also said that, at the same time, the government has provided a special subsidy for local students covering all the tuition increases, noting that UM had not received negative feedback from students.
“We have several programs, namely postgraduate courses, that also allow students to work as assistants to professors, as well as doing research, which can help local students, especially those enrolled in master’s and doctorate programs, to cover part of the tuition expenses,” Song explained. He added that “in cases of extreme financial need, we have mechanisms to help the students.” RM
