PN Candidate’s Education Background Sparks Masters Vs Executive Master’s Debate
The academic qualifications of PN’s Kuala Kubu Baharu candidate Khairul Azhari Saut recently had netizens asking whether someone can get an executive Master’s degree with a diploma.
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Malaysians often complain about the lack of quality or educated politicians in the country. This has led to a scrutinizing of our politicians’ educational background. It doesn’t help when there have been several cases where the educational credentials of prolific figures look falsified.
With the Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election coming up early next month, the latest person to have their qualification scrutinized is Bersatu’s Perikatan Nasional (PN) candidate Khairul Azhari Saut.
Many people questioned how Khairul managed to get an executive Master’s degree in business management from Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP) in 2021 when he previously graduated with an executive diploma in management from Universiti Malaya in 2019.
UMP confirmed that Khairul was a student and graduated with an executive Master’s degree in business management.
What’s the difference between a Master’s and an executive Master’s degree?
A Master’s degree is typically designed for people who have recently completed their undergraduate studies and are looking to further their knowledge in a specific field. Classes can be full-time or on a part-time basis. Since the students are mostly undergraduates, they have little to no experience in the field yet.
Meanwhile, an executive Master’s degree is typically catered to mid-career professionals with significant work experience who want to improve their skills. Due to this, class schedules are usually flexible to accommodate students’ work hours. This means classes can be held on evenings, weekends, or part-time.
The same goes for the differences between a regular Diploma and an executive Diploma.
There are other differences between both Master’s degrees. As an example, executive Master’s programmes typically attract students from various industries and this opens up networking opportunities among professionals from different backgrounds and sectors. This can provide students with a richer exchange of knowledge and experiences.
However, in the Master’s programme, the networking opportunities are usually limited to peers and faculty members with an emphasis on academic research and learning.
Can you get an executive Master’s with just a diploma?
Yes, you can get an executive Master’s degree with a diploma but it highly depends on the university offering the course. Each university has its requirements to decide whether a student meets the prerequisites to undertake a particular course.
However, there is also a matter of whether the courses offered are recognized by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA).
How has PN responded to the scrutiny?
According to NST, Selangor Perikatan Nasional chairman Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali said PN has expressed satisfaction with Khairul’s educational background.
Azmin said Khairul confirmed he underwent executive courses and thought Khairul exhibited a sense of lifelong learning, which is good.
I thought that was a good thing because we always encourage continuous learning, even for those who may have missed out on university education initially, but taking executive and intensive courses is a common practice across universities.
Selangor Perikatan Nasional chairman Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali
Perikatan chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin claimed the opponent had run out of issues to discuss.
As for Khairul, he has refused to elaborate on the matter and said his credentials can be checked with UMP.
PN had also challenged Pakatan Harapan’s Pang Sock Tao to reveal her academic qualifications in response.
Pang’s academic qualification showed she was a straight-A student, even earning an A+ for Add Maths.
On 21 March, the Kuala Kubu Baharu seat became vacant with the passing of its incumbent Lee Kee Hiong from DAP due to cancer.
The Election Commission (EC) has set 7 May for early voting and 11 May as polling day for the by-election.
It will be a four-cornered fight involving Perikatan’s Khairul Azhari, Pakatan Harapan’s Pang Sock Tao, Parti Rakyat Malaysia’s Hafizah Zainuddin and independent Nyau Ke Xin.
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