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Matriculation or pre-University Education in Malaysia
Upon completion of SPM, students decide on whether they want to study Form 6 or the Matriculation (pre-University). Students may submit an application for admission to matriculation, a one or two year program, which is governed by the education ministry of the country. It was generally a one-year program but since 2006, 30% of the matriculation students are offered two-year programs. Most of the seats in the matriculation program are set aside for the locals and a certain percentage, which is very minimal, is reserved for students from abroad. The criterion for selection is not declared publicly. However, in actuality, SPM results are used in judging the ‘demand’ of a student to be accepted into the program. Usually, students who live in rural areas have a higher percentage chance of getting into the program than others. All expenses of the students are paid by the government and the intake of students starts in the month of May.
In the program of matriculation, the questions are set by the teachers of the same institute that a student is enrolled in and are also checked by them, leading to the general belief that the system is not fool-proof. The basis of examination in Matriculation is the semester system i.e., in a year there would be two semesters. In spite of this, the scope and depth of the Matriculation program is thought to be lesser in comparison to that of the STPM. In some courses that are offered by the universities, varying from fields of Law to Medicine, most of the students are also enrolled in the Matriculation program. The Matriculation program has been upheld as a distinct and unique form of education by some educationalists in Malaysia.
Some students are open to undertaking their pre-university education in colleges that are private. They might also decide on other programs like the 'A' Levels of the British program, and Matriculation programs from countries such as America, Australia and Canada.
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