Scholarships & Study Loans For Higher Education

Higher education in Malaysia is not free and as the cost of education rises, it is important to plan ahead and consider the various options that are available to help finance your education. The most common forms of financial aid are scholarships (need not have to repay), study loans (need to repay and usually with interest) and waiver of tuition fee by the educational institutions.

This chapter provides some sources that you can approach for the funding of your higher education which include the Scholarship from the Public Service Department (JPA); Scholarship Division of the Ministry of Higher Education, The STAR Education Fund, MAPCU Scholarship Programme, Sin Chew Education Fund, PTPTN study loans, EPF Education Withdrawal Scheme, SOCSO Loan for Dependent Children, Kuok Foundation, and many others.

For more information on financial aid, you can log onto:
http://www.studymalaysia.com/student/scholarship.php


The Public Service Department (JPA) Local & Overseas Sponsorship Programmes

Upon successful completion of 11 years of free education (6 years of primary and 5 years of secondary education), further study opportunities available in Malaysia to SPM-level school-leavers like you are abundant. Every year, the Government offers thousands of scholarships to excellent Malaysian students through the PUBLIC SERVICES DEPARTMENT (JPA), to pursue their studies at either local or foreign higher educational institutions at Diploma and Bachelor’s degree levels. The various JPA sponsorship programmes are:

JPA’s Local Sponsorship for Diploma & Bachelor’s Degree Programmes

Under the local programme, JPA offers scholarships to students who have successfully obtained admission to the following higher educational institutions for Diploma and Bachelor’s degree programmes:

(i) Sponsorship for Diploma & Bachelor’s Degree Courses at Universities
The areas of discipline offered by universities and identified for JPA sponsorship are:

Guide to Applicant’s Eligibility

The award of scholarship is based on the applicants’ academic achievement and other criteria. Below are some criteria that would be considered in the application:

• Participation in co-curricular activities
• Performance during the interview
• Socio-economic status and family’s background

Below are the scholarship application guidelines for those who have gained admission to pursue a Diploma or Bachelor’s degree at a university:

• Must be a Malaysian citizen
• Opened to year 1 students who have been accepted by the abovementioned universities.
• Not older than 19 years old for Diploma programmes
• Not older than 24 years old for Bachelor’s degree programmes
• SPM results - Grade 2A for at least 7 subjects
• STPM results - at least Principal B in 4 subjects
• Diploma - minimum 3.30 CGPA score
• STAM results - at least 4 Mumtaz and 5 Jayyid Jiddah
• Passed the matriculation examination by the Ministry of Education/University’s Foundation Studies and score at least 3.30 CGPA

(ii) Sponsorship for Diploma Courses at Polytechnics

Sponsorships are given for Diploma programmes offered by Polytechnics, Ministry of Higher Education, subject to the following conditions:

• Must be a Malaysian citizen;
• Open to all students possessing Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) only;
• Not older than 19 years old;
• Already registered for year 1 of the programme at the polytechnic;
• Possess at least Grade 6C in Bahasa Malaysia and at least 4B in 6 subjects

Application Procedure (Online only)
All applications must be done online through the websites http://www.jpa.gov.my or http://esila.jpa.gov.my after an announcement is made in the newspaper stating that the respective polytechnics are open for applications (usually in the month of July each year). The application form is free. All enquiries or applications should be addressed to:

Jabatan Perkhidmatan Awam (JPA)
Bahagian Latihan
Aras 5, Blok C1, Parcel C,
Pusat Pentadbiran Kerajaan Persekutuan
62510 Putrajaya
(u.p. Unit Latihan Sebelum Perkhidmatan – Dalam Negeri)
Tel: 03-8885 3000 / 8885 3049 Fax: 03-8881 0745 / 8889 2171
Email: lspdn@jpa.gov.my Website: www.jpa.gov.my

JPA’s Overseas Sponsorship for Bachelor’s Degree Programmes

The Public Services Department (JPA) also offers overseas Bachelor’s degree sponsorship programmes for students with outstanding SPM results to pursue critical courses at renowned foreign universities. The selected recipients who must be below 18 years old will undergo locally-conducted preparatory courses for about one to two years. JPA sponsored students who pass the preparatory course with distinctions and have been offered a place in any of the top universities in US, Britain or Australia listed by JPA will be given a full scholarship.

Application Form
The application form can be downloaded from JPA’s websites at http://www.jpa.gov.my or http://esila.jpa.gov.my from the day of the official announcement of SPM results. For more information, please contact:

Jabatan Perkhidmatan Awam
Bahagian Latihan
Aras 4, 5 & 6, Blok C1, Kompleks C
Pusat Pentadbiran Kerajaan Persekutuan
62510 Putrajaya
(u/p : Program Ijazah Luar Negara)
Tel : 03-8885 3397
Faks:03-8889 2170
Email : esila@jpa.gov.my

JPA’s Loan Schemes for Tuition Fees at Foreign Universities (Skim Pinjaman Yuran Pengajian Di Luar Negara)

JPA provides study loans under the concept of ‘cost sharing’ where it can provide up to a maximum of RM200,000 per student for tuition fees abroad. For further enquiries, please contact:

Jabatan Perkhidmatan Awam
Bahagian Latihan
Aras 5, Blok C1, Kompleks C
Pusat Pentadbiran Kerajaan Persekutuan
62510 Putrajaya
(up: Unit Latihan Sebelum Perkhidmatan (Luar Negara))
Tel :03-8885 3386
Faks :03-8889 2170
e-mail : pinjaman.yuran@jpa.gov.my

(More details in StudyMalaysia.com)