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The Irish government has warned Malaisien education authorities against a private higher education institution located near Kuala Lumpur. According to Irish Ambassador to Malaisie, Irish International University does not offer any courses any classes in Ireland and is not an Irish university.

The Higher Education Ministry and Universiti Malaya (UM) will investigate allegations of research fraud involving a group of UM faculty of medicine researchers. The allegations of fraud exploded over social media in the past week, and was subsequently picked up by the mainstream scientific press.The Higher Education Minister has said that he would personally look into the matter. The university has formed an ad hoc committee to investigate the allegation.

The Higher Education Ministry will set up a National Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Registry to curb the production and usage of fraudulent academic titles by individuals and organisations. The ministry said the move will ensure credible use of academic titles, enable the public to verify information and deter bogus issuance of academic certificates. The most common fraudulently used and produced academic title in Malaysia is ‘Dr.’ as in a PhD graduate.

With some using unscrupulous ways just to get titles and academic qualifications, the Government is stepping up its efforts to prevent another avenue from being misused – honorary doctorates. The usage of the honorary “Dr” title is limited to within the awarding university, recipients aren’t allowed to put the “Dr” title in front of their names in public. As a reminder to be vigilant about any misrepresentation and use of fraudulent awards, the Higher Education Ministry sent out guidelines in March on the issuance of honorary doctorates.

The Higher Education Ministry of Oman has banned four Malaysian universities due to alleged academic and administrative abuses by the varsities. In total, there are 378 Omani students enrolled in the four universities. The Times of Oman, in its report, stated that the Committee for the Recognition of Non-Omani Higher Education Institutions and the Equivalence of Educational Qualifications in the Oman Higher Education Ministry had issued a decision to stop dealing with these universities. It said Omani students were not allowed to attend the educational institutions following the decision. Representatives from one of the universities claim that the Ministry’s action is ‘unwarranted’.