The University of Malaya (UM) is a public research university located in the middle of the beautiful Malaysian city of Kuala Lumpur. Most students love their learning experience and their student life experience at UM since the setting is great, but the education standards are just as respected and well-known. In fact, UM is the highest-ranked university-level institution in all of Malaysia.
UM is also the oldest university in Malaysia, but though it has a lot of great history, it’s very much focused on the present and the future. Over a dozen faculties filled with experienced tutors and lecturers offer many programmes and courses of study, and all programmes are created to give students a lot of academic knowledge and understanding while preparing them well for the working world.
The global job market can be very competitive, but UM graduates stand out and enjoy great job prospects as a result. The many career services and employment guides offered at UM also do a lot to help, and these services are just one small part of the university’s full student support programme. There are scholarships, academic student services and high teaching standards, and they all combine so that every student of every background feels welcome and heard by UM.
4,500 international students already attend UM each year, and 90 countries are represented on campus (with both numbers growing over time). A quarter of the students enrolled have overseas backgrounds, and almost every student finds it easy to fit in and feel at home in this friendly, welcoming learning community.
It’s hard to see how UM be anything other than the perfect choice for a potential future student who wants to continue their education in Malaysia. With on-campus and off-campus living options and a lot of flexibility built into the university’s facilities, UM has the tools to give anyone the student life they’re dreaming of.
UM is very proud of its reputation and its ability to always give students high-quality teaching. Keeping up teaching quality across a wide range of courses isn’t easy, but it’s achieved at UM and proven by the university’s high global rankings and ratings. UM is one of the top 70 universities worldwide according to the QS World University Rankings, just one of its many impressive academic achievements.
Students at UM learn a lot about themselves and the world as well as learning about their specific subject areas. Leaders of tomorrow are created by talented lecturers and tutors who work hard to give all their students what they need.
This is the best university in Malaysia for a reason, and the reason is that students and staff members put in a lot of effort each day. Students listen, learn and develop while staff members listen, inspire and encourage.
Another part of keeping up the quality teaching standards at UM is the great student-to-faculty ratio. There are 10 students to every faculty member, which means every student can get enough attention and focus to succeed, and nobody ever needs to be forgotten or left behind. Enrolling at UM equals signing up to receive a lot of support, a great education and a million chances each academic year to be inspired, grow and develop.
UM also does some important research based on improving quality of life and making positive community contributions. This is an institution that’s always looked ahead, and it’s perfect for equally forward-thinking students.
Entry Requirements
To enrol in any programme at UM, an applicant must meet a certain set of university entry requirements. These entry requirements mostly depend on the degree level and the student’s chosen programme of study, but there are some general university requirements to meet, too.
Undergraduates need to have completed high school or the equivalent in their home country. Postgraduates need existing university qualifications, usually at least a bachelor’s degree in a relevant subject, with a preferred CGPA of 3.0 or above. At both study levels, applicants need to be able to prove their English language proficiency, prove they can cover their tuition costs, and get their hands on all the relevant documents they’ll need during their application, like academic transcripts.
All course-specific entry requirements and any extra entry requirements for international students are listed in full on the UM website’s individual course description pages. Students should do all the research they need to do before applying, making 100 per cent certain that they meet all the requirements to avoid admission disappointment.
Students applying for a place at UM will have to prove their proficiency in the English language. If they can’t show their proficiency in another way, this will need to be done through an English test and the achievement of a minimum English score. The minimum score required will change from course to course, so students should do their research to determine eligibility for admission before applying.
UM accepts a few different English proficiency testing methods, including the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the Pearson Test of English (PTE) and the International English Language Testing System (IELTS).
The IELTS is one of the most common, so using its scores as an example, an applicant wanting to study a bachelor’s degree in the Faculty of Science would need an overall IELTS band score of at least 6, while an applicant wanting to study a bachelor’s degree in the Faculty of Education would only need an overall IELTS band score of 5.5 minimum.
Students can apply for a place at UM online. The admission process is kept simple and easy to reduce the stress and confusion that potential students experience when they’re trying to get an education, and application guidance is easy to access. To start the university admission journey, an applicant just has to access the application portal via the UM website and choose their programme.
They will then enter their personal details, share their academic qualifications and complete their application before submitting it along with any requested supporting documents. These documents usually include a valid passport, a photo for identification, academic transcripts and academic certificates. Some courses might ask for other documents, so some research is necessary to make sure an application includes everything it needs to include.
At this stage, international applicants will need to pay a processing fee. Then they need to wait to hear about their student admission decision and can check the same portal that they applied through for updates. If an offer is received from UM, it can also be accepted on this portal, confirming an applicant’s place and officially turning them into a student at the university.
During the admission stage, applicants should also take the time to research the tuition fees that apply to their course, to make sure that they’re able to cover the fees. Tuition fees can change a lot between courses and are more expensive for international students than they are for domestic students.
UM values students from all financial backgrounds and offers as much financial assistance as possible to create more equal education opportunities. Students should take advantage of the university’s financial aid if they need it and apply for any scholarships available if they’re eligible.
There are hardship funds, bursaries and university scholarships available at UM to help students who are in financial need and to reward students who are achieving great academic success. All these funding support options can reduce tuition fees/other living costs a lot, making life much easier for students and letting them put the focus where it really should be: on their studies.
There are a few different scholarships available to international students, like the Yayasan KLK 2022 Scholarship and the scholarships offered through Epsom College Malaysia. The Yayasan Scholarship has an annual value of RMB 13,000, renewable each year for the length of a degree. This scholarship is offered to students who are studying certain subjects, including agriculture, science, engineering and finance (a full list is available in the scholarships section of the UM website).
The scholarships offered through Epsom College Malaysia are for final-year undergraduates at UM who want to study further with an international postgraduate certificate programme. Further options to explore include the Maybank Scholarship Award, the Khazanah Scholarship Programme, and the Panasonic Scholarship. There’s also funding support available through the PTPTN Education Loan Scheme, which offers partial or full tuition payments to reduce student costs.
All these university scholarships and support schemes make university life a little more affordable, and they allow less fortunate students to access studies that they might not otherwise have been able to. Education should be accessible to everybody, and UM tries its best to make tuition affordable for this very reason.
UM provides students with a range of subjects to study, including over 40 bachelor’s degree programmes and many master’s and doctoral programmes. The possibilities at this university are nearly endless, and UM is proud to be able to offer students who have enrolled so many great and varied choices. The many courses and programmes available to study are structured into 13 core faculties:
As mentioned, these 13 faculties cover a mixture of smaller subject areas, allowing students to choose whatever course they feel best benefits them and be led effectively into their chosen professional industry by the time they reach graduation. UM also does a lot of important and valuable research. The three core research centres on campus are the Higher Institution Centre of Excellence (HICoE), the University of Malaya Centre of Excellence (UMCoE) and the Centre of Research (CoR).
These centres all work hard for the vision they share. They want to contribute to new knowledge and improve humanity’s quality of life. Adding to the community every day by leading the way in discovery and truth, the research at UM has a real mission that only adds to the university’s overall success and reputation. Students enrolled at UM are part of a community that leads in innovation, excellence and accomplishment.
Students are never bored on the UM campus. With many facilities available for studying, socialising, eating and recreation, there’s always something to do. A number of cafés and restaurants are placed in convenient locations on campus, providing ideal student life centres for getting some lunch between classes and meeting up with new friends to make some happy memories. UM students never have to look far for a coffee, a sandwich or a cake.
There are also lots of great student recreation centres and exercise facilities, including badminton courts, tennis courts, a swimming pool, a rugby pitch and a football pitch. Heading off campus, all the facilities and amenities of Kuala Lumpur are suddenly available for students to enjoy, from work experience opportunities to evening entertainment options.
Academically, the facilities at UM are just as ideal. The UM Library, which was created in 1959, is a popular student activity centre for studying and research on campus. Today, it contains over a million titles and is filled with useful digital and physical learning resources, including research materials and even past exam papers for targeted exam preparation sessions. The library has some comfortable independent study spaces and some well-equipped bookable group study rooms, so every need is met.
There are also lots of great UM teaching venues, from large lecture theatres to smaller collaborative seminar rooms. All class sizes can find the right place to learn, and all rooms of every size come with modern technology and resources and provide a comfortable, welcoming environment to students and staff members. Everything at UM, from the student accommodation to the campus cafes, has been designed with comfort and quality as the top two priorities.
There are two main university accommodation options for international students at UM: the 10th Residential College and the International House. The cost of student accommodation depends on the chosen residence and the room type a person selects.
For example, a standard single room in 10th Residential College is RMB 30 daily, while an executive deluxe room in the same residence building is RMB 70 daily. Rooms in International House cost around RMB 900 monthly, with apartments for four students costing about RMB 1,800 monthly in total, dividing up to RMB 450 monthly per person.
Searching for the right accommodation can be stressful, especially for international students, and UM understands this. It’s a university that, unlike some others, does all it can to make sure students are supported and able to find a good space to make into a home.
There’s a full student accommodation support team operating under the name Student Accommodation Matters, and this team should be a student’s first point of contact if they need help securing an on-campus or off-campus student house or apartment. They will be especially helpful for overseas applicants who need to find housing, in most cases, before they’ve ever even been to the country of Malaysia.
UM is a great university because it cares about attention to detail and meeting student needs. It shouldn’t be surprising to learn that UM has a full student support programme available to all people enrolled. This programme features a huge range of student services, from academic coaching to the Student Welfare team, which supports emotional wellbeing and promotes good mental health on campus.
Counselling assistance is free and easy for students to access in all areas, so they can speak with a student guide or experienced expert about their academic life, their financial struggles and their emotional issues, from homesickness and study stress to common conditions like anxiety and depression. Any student support services a person can imagine are available to them at UM.
Even when a student feels a little bit alone, they can talk to someone. All students at UM are encouraged to get help when they need it, and UM does everything it can to support student needs so that they can focus on enjoying their academic and social life on campus, making the most of every second they spend at university.
The incredible teaching provided by academic staff at UM combines perfectly with the huge number of helpful career services offered by support staff at UM to keep students 100 per cent on track to get their qualifications and all the skills they need to be employable and attractive to companies. Job prospects are great after graduation from UM, and alumni career options are open wide.
One example of UM’s amazing employment services in action is the compulsory Co-Curriculum Course, as this allows every student to learn, develop and build a transferable skill. There’s also the Graduate Employability Matters group. Its mission is to develop graduates into leaders and skilled professionals in demand in the labour market.
It’s easy for students to chat one-to-one with an experienced student guide and explore their future plans whenever they need to, developing a real idea of what to do next and how to get where they want to go. It’s also easy for students to access employability resources through the Career Kit programme.
The graduate employment rate at UM, which improves each academic year, is currently at 75 per cent, and students are supported from the first day of their studies until after graduation. New graduates can still access UM’s many helpful career services.
For any student who wants to step confidently into their future from an academic perspective and a professional perspective, UM is a good choice. The student community is diverse and welcoming, and the location is exciting and filled with a million extracurricular and work experience options. There’s nothing unavailable or inaccessible to a UM student.
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Best Uni
”University of Malaya is a good choice if you want to further your studies at the posgraduate level because it is the best university in Malaysia. My supervisor and the Institute of Graduate Studies are very supportive in helping me with my studies here and I have also received great help from the staff read full review
”University of Malaya is a good choice if you want to further your studies at the posgraduate level because it is the best university in Malaysia. My supervisor and the Institute of Graduate Studies are very supportive in helping me with my studies here and I have also received great help from the staff in dealing with the visa and accommodation issues. show less
International reputation for Research
I realize choosing an institution for higher studies abroad depends on two things. First, the institution ranking that reflects international acceptance. Second, the funding opportunities,for example a scholarship to support your studies at the postgraduate level. Of course it is not so easy to find fu read full review
I realize choosing an institution for higher studies abroad depends on two things. First, the institution ranking that reflects international acceptance. Second, the funding opportunities,for example a scholarship to support your studies at the postgraduate level. Of course it is not so easy to find funding for one’s studies in higher education in any part of the world. But fortunately I found both from the University of Malaya. Moreover, it’s reputation in research at the international level is another reason that attracts me to come and study at University of Malaya show less