SPM 2021: Nearly 10,700 candidates did not sit for exams

PUTRAJAYA: A total of 10,681 SPM 2021 candidates did not sit for the exams, says the Malaysian Examinations Syndicate (MES).

Of this total, the MES said in a statement on Thursday (June 16) that 9,037 (2.3%) were school candidates, and 1,644 (0.42%) were private candidates.

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"The total number of candidates who registered for the SPM 2021 was 407,097 candidates.

"For the purpose of the SPM 2021 result analysis, only 392,837 registered candidates were taken into account.

"These candidates are those who registered the first time and registered for at least six subjects.

"Of this total, only 382,156 candidates sat for the SPM 2021 exams," it added.

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Explaining the situation, Education Minister Datuk Dr Radzi Jidin said this was among the challenges the ministry faced.

He said the ministry is analysing the data and trends to see if it is different from the previous years.

“There are various reasons, from personal and family matters to candidates choosing to work.

“For school candidates, there are those who decide not to take the exams (after registering for it) despite their teachers visiting their homes and making calls to encourage them to do so,” he said after visiting SMK Putrajaya Precinct 18 (1) in conjunction with the release of the SPM 2021 results on Thursday (June 16).

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Radzi said at the school level, there are various interventions in place to encourage students to sit for the SPM exams.