Our facilities & Resources

Established as the second university in the country in 1969, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) was first known as Universiti Pulau Pinang. In 1971, USM moved from its temporary premises at the Malayan Teachers’ Training College, Bukit Gelugor to the present 416.6 hectare site at Minden, approximately 9.7 km from Georgetown. USM offers courses ranging from Natural Sciences, Applied Sciences, Medical and Health Sciences, Pharmaceutical Sciences to Building Science and Technology, Social Sciences, Humanities, and Education. These are available at undergraduate and postgraduate levels to approximately 30,000 students at its 17 Academic Schools on the main campus in the island of Penang; 6 Schools at the Engineering Campus in Nibong Tebal (approximately 50km from the main campus); and 3 at the Health Campus in Kubang Kerian, Kelantan (approximately 300km from the main campus).

USM also has 17 dedicated research centres for a wide range of specialisations which include archaeology, medicine and dentistry, molecular medicine, science and technology, Islamic development and management studies, and policy research and international studies. It also provides consultancy, testing, and advisory services to the industry under the ambit of USAINS Holdings Sdn Bhd, the University’s commercial arm.

Since the beginning, USM has adopted the School system rather than the traditional Faculty system to ensure that its students are multi-disciplined from their exposure to other areas of study by other Schools. It also encourages students to be active in extra-curricular activities given the myriad of clubs and societies available.

As a Research Intensive University recognised by the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia (MOHE) in 2007, USM offers educational and research opportunities to students and staff. In 2008, USM also became the first university in the country to be selected by the Malaysian government to participate in the Accelerated Programme for Excellence (APEX), a fast-track programme that helps tertiary institutions achieve world-class status.

Schools at Engineering Campus

  1. School of Civil Engineering
  2. School of Electrical & Electronic Engineering
  3. School of Aerospace Engineering
  4. School of Chemical Engineering
  5. School of Mechanical Engineering
  6. School of Materials & Mineral Resources Engineering

Service Centres at Engineering Campus

  1. Centre for Knowledge, Communication & Technology
  2. Library
  3. Islamic Centre
  4. Centre for Language and Translation
  5. Engineering Innovation and Technology Development Unit

Academic Facilities & Resources

The facilities that USM provides for its students are delineated below:

  • An impressive Museum filled with world-class displays & a state-of-the-art (main campus)
  • Art Gallery with fine art pieces. (main campus)
  • Lecture theatre and halls to facilitate classroom learning and teaching.
  • Banks, bookshop, pharmacy, a post office and retail outlet to cater to the needs of students
  • Anoutstanding research library of over one million items and an extensive network of electronic databases and internet access.
  • Students’ residences that accommodate their stay on campus.
  • Sport Centre that is equipped with indoor and outdoor facilities that caters to students’ sporting events and games.
  • Warm and cozy cafeterias, as well as well-designed pavilions

Students Support Services & Students Development Activities

USM provides various services for its students such as hostel accommodation, counseling/motivational guidance, sport and recreational amenities like soccer fields, running track, an Astroturf hockey stadium and an Olympic-sized swimming pool. Cultural events/activities are organised at the Cultural Hall to foster closer ties among students. There are also various clubs and societies that cater to a wide array of interests. These include the Political Science Society, Computer Science Club, Indian Cultural Club, Navigator Society, Astronomy Club, Debating & Public Speaking Club, and Mass Communication Club to name a few.The Counseling Unit at USM offers support services to help develop students’ potential and capabilities.

School of Civil Engineering Facilities

School of Civil Engineering also provide the students and our stake holder with excellent facilities . Among them are

IT;  Our Building have networked PCs to students. Wi-Fi internet access is widely available.
Online learning system; Students are given an e-mail account and access to our online learning system website. Library gives access to all major subscription databases for legal research, houses online versions of the course materials distributed to students, and displays all of the up-to-date news for students on their course at their centre.
International resources; Some international sources for research are available on the databases which The University subscribes to. For example,  Engineering Library includes international journals for civil engineering
Refreshments/meals; Refreshments are available at our building, either in the form of a cafeteria offering hot and cold meals and drinks, or in the form of vending machines located in the building.
Seminar, teaching and tutorial rooms; We provide 4 tutorial rooms , 1 teching room and 2 seminar rooms in our building. These facilities can be easily booked during office hour.

Laboratory facilities: We have 12 laboratories to provide excellent service to our stake holder. The lab. are:
Computer Laboratory
Geomatics Instrument Portal
Heavy Structures Laboratory
Light Structures Laboratory
Concrete Laboratory
Highway Laboratory
Traffic Laboratory
Hydraulics Laboratory
Environmental Laboratory 2
Environmental Laboratory 1
Fabrication Workshop
Drawing Room

Tour our facilities on pdf
Tour our laboratory facilities on pdf.