The closer bridge towards Islamic studies in higher education in Malaysia and Indonesia

The transformations of Islamic higher education in Indonesia have occurred since the establishment of STI to PTAIN, then IAIN and UIN. It has tremendous impact on the implementation of models of Islamic studies. At early stage of development, Islamic higher education in this country tends to follow a normative-idealistic approach of Islamic studies due to the huge influences of many Middle Eastern graduates. However, changes of Islamic studies approach come to exist when the Western graduates bring non-scriptualistic methodologies and multidisciplinary approach in Islamic studies. If compared to Malaysia, the two poles of Eastern or Western and Islamic or non-Islamic higher education types have been integrated with the paradigm of Islamization of knowledge. Recent development indicates that Malaysian and Indonesian universities have intensified their mutual cooperation through U to U or G to G Memorandum of Understanding. There are several ways of encounters, namely teacher (or lecturer) and student exchanges, literature line, bilateral cooperation, and informal factors. With the closer link between the two people of these countries, the bonds between Islamic studies connecting the two countries have become
closer