The Malaysian Education Ministry has postponed the public examinations for Form 5 and Form 6.

The dates for SPM, SVM and STAM have been moved to February 2021. The STPM will now be held on 8 March 2020. The postponement has been announced as a measure to ensure students are not placed at risk of infection due to the rising cases of Covid-19 in Malaysia. The Senior Minister for Education announced that this is applicable to private schools and all educational institutions registered under the ministry. He urged institutions not registered under the ministry to also observe the same safety recommendations. The Minister stated that the rescheduling of the examinations will not impact student admission to public universities through the Central University Admission Unit’s online portal (UPUOnline).

This new ruling was announced soon after the Malaysian government extended the CMCO – Conditional Movement Control Order till 6 December 2020 as a measure to restrict movement and contain the spread of the pandemic.

Source: https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2020/11/639268/exams-form-5-form-6-students-postponed-yet-again

Commentary by Saman Imtiaz, Education Services, Malaysia

The postponement of the examinations will bring about changes to the Malaysian academic calendar and cycles for results and university applications. While the Malaysia government has announced that the change in dates for the examinations will not negatively impact students’ plans for admissions into Malaysian institutions, it is important to note that the date for results has not been announced as yet. Additional details are expected to be announced soon. This postponement of the examinations may impact the application timelines for UK institutions seeking to recruit students into undergraduate programmes. It is recommended that UK institutions allow flexibility in terms of eligibility criteria, application timelines and reflect the same through student facing messaging and communications for the next intake cycles and recruitment from Malaysia.