Barring use of forecast results hampers pre-varsity enrolment

PETALING JAYA: Parents continue to be upset over the Education Ministry’s decision not to accept SPM forecast results for entry into pre-university programmes and hope it will reconsider.

With twins who will be sitting for their Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examinations in a Penang school this year, Anthony Raj said he would rather his children get a headstart in their tertiary education through the January intake.

“This is better than using the three months to learn something unrelated to their chosen academic path.

“Also, if someone enrols in January and ends up not liking the course, they can switch to something else when their actual results are out, without losing too much time,” he said.

Anthony added that if the ruling was enforced, he would not hesitate to send his daughter overseas to pursue her A-Levels so that she could finish her studies sooner.

A parent, who wanted to be known as Mrs Chun, said the ruling did not make sense to her.

“Private colleges and universities have been accepting forecast results for over 30 years. It’s really upsetting.

“This eleventh hour change is unfair not only to the students, but to us parents as well!” said the mother whose son will be sitting for his SPM in November and is hoping to pursue his A-Levels in January.

In a statement earlier yesterday, the ministry made it clear that students must use their actual results when applying for entry into matriculation, pre-university, foundation programmes or diploma courses at private higher education institutions, as compelled under Section 38 of the Private Higher Education Institutions Act 1996 (Act 555).

Johnny Tan said he is now considering a few options including enrolling his daughter for an A-Levels programme in a later intake.

“If there’s no other choice, I will send my daughter abroad even though this will be a strain financially,” he said.

Tan, who is from Cheras, said that considering the number of people who had enrolled in colleges using their forecast results, including himself, “it is very surprising to hear this now”.

Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia chairman Datin Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim said higher education institutions would have to bear the brunt of poor students’ performance if they chose to keep those whose actual results were poor.

She also said that parents should ensure their children were up to the mark or risk having to pay more than what was intended.

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