SDG 5 Indicator

5.3.1 5.3.2 5.3.3 5.3.4 5.6.4 5.6.5 5.6.6 5.6.7

5.3 – Student Access Measures

5.3.3 – Women’s Access Schemes

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) offers women’s access schemes, including mentoring, scholarships, and other provisions. The mentor-mentee program is compulsory for all undergraduate students, supporting female students from their first year to graduation. UKM collaborates with Usanita Sdn Bhd (USANITA) and the e-Entrepreneurs Women Association Malaysia (EWA) to empower women entrepreneurs and students through mentoring. The Leadership Shadowing Program for new lecturers also saw strong female participation in 2023, with 52 out of 83 lecturers and 13 out of 45 mentors being women.

UKM provides scholarships such as the Vice-Chancellor’s Scholarship, Zakat UKM Scholarship, and the Research Zamalah Scheme. In 2023, 1 out of 3 Vice-Chancellor’s and 5 out of 11 Zakat UKM Scholarships were awarded to women. UKM also assists students in securing external scholarships like PETRONAS and Maybank.

Through the Tun Fatimah Hashim Women’s Leadership Centre, UKM organises programs like webinars and short courses to uplift female students and leaders.

MENTORING

Mentor-Mentee Program

The mentor-mentee program, compulsory for all students from their first to final year, provides personalised guidance to help students succeed academically. Mentors are typically academic staff from the student’s own faculty, ensuring they understand the unique academic environment and challenges their mentees face. Given that UKM has more female students than male, this program is vital for empowering women and promoting gender equity, helping all students, particularly underperforming ones, excel in their studies.

In the Faculty of Islamic Studies, a Mentor-Mentee Week was organised from January 31 to February 5, 2023, to provide students an opportunity to meet their mentors. This initiative was designed to offer academic guidance and support, especially to help students prepare for their final exams. The program fosters a closer relationship between mentors and mentees, ensuring that students receive the necessary assistance to succeed in their studies, especially during critical periods like exam preparation.

This picture shows a poster of Mentor-Mentee Week organised by the Faculty of Islamic Studies.

This picture shows mentees meeting with their mentor during the Mentor-Mentee Week organised by the Faculty of Islamic Studies.

Women Entrepreneurs Mentoring Scheme

In 2023, UKM collaborated with Usanita Sdn Bhd (USANITA) and the e-Entrepreneurs Women Association Malaysia (EWA) to empower women entrepreneurs and students. This program is a dedicated mentoring initiative for women who aspire to start their own businesses and pursue entrepreneurship.

USANITA aims to enhance the employability of women and students in the entrepreneurial sector by equipping them with essential industry skills. The collaboration between USANITA, UKM, and EWA Malaysia will focus on skill development, abilities, creativity, and innovation.

This picture shows Representatives from USANITA, UKM, and EWA attended the signing ceremony of the Letter of Intent between USANITA, UKM, and EWA at the UKM Chancellery in Bangi.

Leadership Shadowing Program

The Leadership Shadowing Program is an annual program organised by Profesional UKM for newly appointed lecturers. This program highlights strong female participation in 2023, with 52 out of 83 lecturers and 13 out of 45 mentors being women. This two-month program pairs new lecturers with senior leaders, offering valuable experience in leadership and governance, further promoting gender balance in university leadership roles.

The program is one of the university’s efforts to provide exposure, experience, and observation in leading the university both now and in the future. This talent group represents the future leaders of the university. The leaders are members of the university’s top management, including the Vice-Chancellor, Deputy Vice-Chancellors, Pro Vice-Chancellors, Legal Advisors, Deans, and Directors.

The images show the first mentor-mentee meetings from the 2023 Leadership Shadowing Program.

SCHOLARSHIPS

The UKM provides multiple scholarship opportunities for postgraduate students, including the Research Zamalah Scheme, the Vice-Chancellor’s Scholarship, and the Zakat UKM Scholarship. These scholarships are aimed at supporting both Master’s and PhD students in their academic pursuits.

In 2023:

Three students received the Vice-Chancellor’s Scholarship, with one of the recipients being a female student.
Eleven students received the Zakat UKM Scholarship, with five female recipients.

These scholarships are part of UKM’s broader efforts to support students financially and promote gender balance in higher education.

In addition, UKM also assists students in securing various established external scholarships, such as the PETRONAS Scholarship, Maybank Scholarship, Permodalan Nasional Berhad Scholarship, and many others. These scholarships are open to all genders without any discrimination, with the selection process based solely on academic performance and extracurricular achievements. This ensures equal opportunities for all students to benefit from financial support, fostering a diverse and inclusive learning environment at UKM.

OTHER PROVISION

UKM also organised numerous programs related to women’s access schemes, usually under the Tun Fatimah Hashim Women’s Leadership Centre. In 2023, the centre held several “Women Leadership Webinars 2023,” including a webinar on “Women’s Leadership in Education and Community Research,” targeting all women lecturers and students.

This picture shows a poster of Women’s Leadership Webinar 2023 Series 3/2023, titled “Women’s Leadership in Education and Community Research.

Additionally, another “Women Leadership Webinar 2023” titled “Self-Empowerment in Leadership” featured a keynote speaker, Prof. Emerita Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr. Sharifah Hapsah Syed Hasan Shahabudin, the President of the National Council of Women’s Organizations Malaysia and former Vice-Chancellor of UKM.