Malaysian top scorers who were initially denied a scholarship to study overseas received good news when it was announced that the government will consider providing them with funding to study overseas based on the amount equivalent to studying for the same course locally. The announcement was made by a Malaysian minister upon consultancy with the Prime Minister. The Minister, however, stated that the specifics of the scholarship provision are still being discussed with the Public Service Department (PSD).

Earlier this year, the Malaysian Government has announced a drastic cut in the number of PSD Scholarships provided to students in the midst of a poor economy. It was announced that the government will only fund 20 top SPM graduates to go overseas (as opposed to 50 in the previous year) and 744 students to study at local institutions (a drop from 1,000 funded to study at foreign institutions the previous year).

Meanwhile, other sponsorship bodies are continuing to send students overseas. MARA, a large sponsorship body has denied that it has stopped sending students abroad, although they have previously mentioned that they will reduce the number of students sent overseas. Other sponsorship bodies include the Central Bank of Malaysia (Bank Negara), Yayasan Telekom Malaysia, Astro, Maxis and Malaysia Development Bank (BPNB) to name a few.

Commentary from Jennifer Wan, British Council Malaysia

While the provision of scholarship by the Malaysian government via the Public Services Department (PSD) has drastically been reduced, there are a number of other scholarship bodies which are still providing financial assistance to excellent Malaysian students who wishes to study overseas. These scholarship providers are mainly private organisations and the application for these scholarships highly competitive. UK institutions wishing are advised to also consider engaging with these sponsors as they are a good source of students.

In addition to the private scholarship providers, the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education are still funding Malaysian academics in public universities who are interested to pursue their PhD or post-doctoral studies abroad.

For more information on the market and how British Council can help promote your institution in Malaysia, please contact Jennifer Wan