THE PURSUIT OF GLOBAL MINDEDNESS AMONG MALAYSIAN HIGHER LEARNING INSTITUTIONS

Globalization has various interpretations and it has been the rationale behind internationalizing higher education. Internationalization of higher education started in the past three decades globally. The term internationalization of higher education has been widely discussed in Malaysia in the past two decades. The survival and acceptance of Higher Learning Institution (HLI)s are highly dependent on how much elements of the internationalization are incorporated into these institutions. Even though Malaysian HLIs have spearheaded this effort a decade ago, it seems to be a goal far reaching for some HLIs. Despite internationalization efforts has been taken by Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia (MOHE), there is no significant and conclusive study on how HLIs in Malaysia are successful in meeting the global needs and requirements and what are the barriers that prohibiting Malaysian HLIs in achieving its internationalization goals. It is important to pay close attention to the development of Malaysian Higher Education System and the barriers towards internationalisation to be sustainable in global environment. This conceptual paper examines on the important factors in sustainability of higher education in Malaysia and proposes conceptual framework to study the important factors in pursuit of global mindedness among Malaysian HLIs.