Malaysia - Country Commercial Guide
Education and Training
Last published date:

Capital:  Kuala Lumpur

Population:  33.5 million (July 2021 est.)

GDP (Purchasing Power Parity):  $855.6 billion (2020 est., in 2017 dollars)

Currency:  Ringgits (MYR)

Language:  Bahasa Malaysia (official), English, Chinese (Cantonese, Mandarin, Hokkien, Hakka, Hainan, Foochow), Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Panjabi, Thai

 

UNESCO Student Mobility Number


Malaysia has 59,144 students studying abroad according to UNESCO.

 

CIA World Factbook


43.43% of Malaysia’s population is under 25 years of age.

  

OVERVIEW

According to the Open Doors data, for the 2019-2020 school year, Malaysia had 6,910 students studying in the U.S.  For the 2020-2021 school year, the number of Malaysian students studying in the U.S. was 5,280, a decrease of 23.6 percent.  The steep decline in the number of students was due to the Covid-19 pandemic and travel restrictions that have been imposed by Malaysia.

The number of scholarships to study in the U.S. offered by Malaysian companies and government agencies has recently declined, but major companies such as Khazanah Nasional, Petronas, and Bank Negara continue to fund U.S. educational opportunities.  Many of these scholarships, however, are reserved for Bumiputra students (Malay Muslim ethnic group).  Thus, students from Chinese, Indian, and other ethnic groups must find other routes for financing their studies abroad.  The Public Service Department (PSD) in Malaysia offers full scholarships to its National Scholars for undergraduate studies at top-ranked universities around the world, including those in the United States.

The primary sources of funding for Malaysian students are personal and family.  Malaysian students are generally known to be good and serious students.  Malaysian government and private corporation scholarships are a secondary source of funding for Malaysian students.  Successful Malaysian government scholarships applicants must be accepted into a TIMEs Higher Education (T.H.E.) World University Ranking Top 100 school to have access to these funds. 

T.H.E. is part of the Thomson Reuters Group.  Due to continued U.S. government commercial diplomacy efforts, the Malaysian government is willing to explore alternatives outside the T.H.E. Top 100 ranked institutions.

The top five international education destinations for Malaysian students other than the U.S. are Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan, Indonesia, and New Zealand, with the majority going to Australia and the United Kingdom.

 

SUB-SECTORS

International Education Overview

2018/19

2019/20

2020/21

Number of Malaysian Students in U.S.

7,709

6,910

5,280

Percentage Change from Previous Year (%)

-6.8

-10.4

-23.6

 Source: IIE Open Doors Report

Below are the top five fields of study for Malaysian students in the U.S.:

  • Engineering
  • Business and Management
  • Mathematics and Computer Sciences
  • Social Sciences
  • Physical and Life Sciences

Although most Malaysian students are still seeking four-year university undergraduate degrees, the U.S. Commercial Service in Malaysia is seeing an increased interest in associates, graduate, and post-graduate degrees as well.  Optional Practical Training (OPT) involving internships, either pre- or post-completion of degree, is gaining market traction as well.

 

OPPORTUNITIES

Malaysia aspires to be a regional and international education hub.  The Malaysian government is strongly encouraging international education partnerships and collaboration and is also pushing Malaysian public and private higher education institutions to become more research oriented.  Twinning between Malaysian and foreign institutions [2+2 (i.e. two years in Malaysia followed by two years study in the U.S.), 3+1, and 4+0 programs] and foreign education institution branch campuses, are various forms of collaboration opportunities.

Academic

2018/19

2019/20

2020/21

Undergraduate

5,104

4,333

2,996

Percentage of Change from Previous Year (%)

-12.3

-15.1

-30.9

Graduate

1,061

1,069

995

Percentage of Change from Previous Year (%)

-4.9

0.8

-6.9

Non-Degree

153

110

44

Percentage of Change from Previous Year (%)

33.0

-28.1

-60.0

OPT

1,391

1,398

1,245

Percentage of Change from Previous Year (%)

13.7

0.5

-10.9

Source: IIE Open Doors Report

 

DIGITAL MARKETING STRATEGIES

Digital marketing in Malaysia is rapidly growing and becoming a competitive industry, especially with the current global pandemic and the increase of smartphone penetration in the country.  As of January 2020, there were 26 million social media users and 40.7 million mobile connections in Malaysia.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, more than 240,000 schools in Malaysia are closed, effecting most students.  Google is widely used to search for information.  Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and WhatsApp are the most popular social media sites in Malaysia.

The Ministry of Education has also launched an e-learning platform “Classruum” that provides online lessons, including video tutorials, notes, trial examinations, and gamification.  Subjects that students will need to know in order to sit for their major exams are taught on the platform.  All lessons are in compliance with the Education Ministry’s syllabus and are taught by a selected group of Malaysian teachers and tutors.  The pre-school education mobile application, “Classruum Playlabs” is designed for small children from four to six years old to educate them about colors, numbers, and the alphabet.  Another new platform, “Brain Box”, which focuses on skills, such as cooking, gardening, sewing, carpentry, and foreign language, is also being looked into.

Jobstreet and Indeed are the most widely used search engines to look for job opportunities.  YouTube, Twitch, and Facebook are widely used for streaming.

 

EVENTS

 

RESOURCES

 

U.S. COMMERCIAL SERVICE CONTACT

Janet Suan, Commercial Assistant

U.S. Commercial Service – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Phone:  +603-2168-5050

Email:  Janet.Suan@trade.gov