KOTA KINABALU: Sabahans who aspire to become qualified real estate agents can now register for the Professional Diploma in Estate Agency programme offered by Open University Malaysia (OUM) in collaboration with the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA).
The first one-year diploma course to be offered in the field of real estate in Sabah, will require the participants to complete 12 papers in order for them to become registered estate agents.
A preview of the course was held at OUM here yesterday, which was attended by MIEA national president Nixon Paul, MIEA deputy president Siva Shanker, MIEA national vice president Lim Boon Ping and OUM senior manager (programme management) Angie Chin.
Nixon said the diploma course aimed to assist practitioners to enhance their professional skills and businesses.
Previously, he said many Sabahans had to fly to Kuala Lumpur to attend real estate courses and this was an expensive option.
“Training courses were previously centralised in Kuala Lumpur and we hoped to decentralise it to benefit more people, members and practitioners.”
Now, practitioners or even students who wish to carve a career in the real estate industry, can take up the diploma course at OUM.
MIEA is a non-profit making organization which has around 800 members nationwide, including registered estate agencts and sales executives. There are two types of MIEA members – ordinary members (registered estate agents) and affiliate members (employees of real estate companies).
The course, which will start in August this year, will be conducted thrice weekly in the evening to allow workers to study on a part-time basis.
Upon completion of the course, participants will be required to sit for a board examination in July.
The university is also looking into offering the programme on weekends for people from out of the city, depending on the number of participants.
Nixon said the course also aimed to increase the number of registered estate agents.
MIEA members will enjoy discounts if they sign up for the diploma course.