Educational Zakat Aid in Malaysian Higher Education

Abstract

Educational zakat aid is one of the aids provided to eligible asnaf to prevent educational drop-off from primary to tertiary level. A student offered a place at a local or foreign Higher Educational Institute (HEI) can receive early education zakat aids. This assistance is combined with an annual HEI-sponsored one. Most beneficiaries of educational zakat aid spend the provisions on their basic needs, including food, transportation, accommodations, and clothing. Nonetheless, a few recipients buy updated cellphones for flaunting and misuse the funds for unnecessary expenditures, such as clearing Astro bills and buying cigarettes. As a result, the educational zakat aid needs to be more effectively spent, leading to zero savings, thus causing monetary problems for students, especially at the end of the academic year. Therefore, this study aims to explain zakat for educational assistance from an Islamic perspective and analyse zakat that is given to Malaysian students in higher education.The qualitative design of this study uses semistructured interviews to conduct case studies. The purposive sampling method was used to interview five Islamic experts in the field of zakat located at Public Universities (PU) and selected Islamic institutions in Malaysia. Using ATLAS TI9 software, interview data was analyzed using thematic analysis under two main themes: (i) The concept of educational zakat aid from an Islamic perspective and (ii) Educational zakat aid for higher education. Both themes align with the study's objectives, which the research group determined. The study focuses on experts' perceptions of the concept of educational zakat from an Islamic perspective and its application to Malaysian higher education students. Based on the research findings, educational zakat in Islam is based on Islamic social justice principles that take as far as the necessities of asnaf students, which begin with the impoverished, poor, and needy fisabilillah. In addition to tuition fees and living allowances, educational zakat also includes learning equipment, medical aid, emergency relief, and natural disaster relief. Additionally, additional academic support is provided for the asnaf development, including training, courses, and specialized programs such as halal, finance, and entrepreneurial certificates, as well as mobility fees aimed at improving the skills and professionalism of students. It is hoped that the study will serve as a practical guide in strengthening the management and administration of zakat, its collection process, distribution to higher education asnaf, and assistance programmes.