KUALA LUMPUR: The UPUOnline system ensures fair and merit-based admission into public universities, with no discrimination against outstanding students, says Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapha Sakmud.
He said through the UPUOnline system, students are free to choose their preferred fields of study at tertiary level.
"However, admission depends on merit ranking, meeting general and special programme requirements, available seats, and passing interviews or tests, where required, not merely on academic and co-curricular achievements," he told Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong in the Special Chamber on Monday (Aug 25).
Dr Wee had raised concern that the trend of student admissions into public universities through the UPUOnline system based on merit was declining sharply, creating uneasiness, especially among high-achieving STPM students.
Dr Wee also expressed concern over the declining number of STPM students successfully gaining admission to public universities via the UPUOnline system compared to those from the matriculation and foundation pathways.
According to the Deputy Higher Education Minister, the projected capacity or number of seats for STPM or equivalent leavers into Bachelor's Degree programmes via the UPUOnline system for the past three years, from 2022 to 2025, actually shows an increase.
For the Academic Session 2022/2023, there were 71,615 places, Academic Session 2023/2024: 72,772 places, and Academic Session 2024/2025: 75,447 places.
"As mentioned earlier, the projected capacity for STPM or equivalent leavers into Bachelor's programmes via the main UPUOnline system has steadily increased year by year.
"This clearly demonstrates the government's commitment to expanding higher education opportunities for Malaysians," he said.
He also said that the Higher Education Ministry was willing to sit down with Dr Wee to discuss any further on specific cases regarding the issue.
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Keywords: UPUOnline, University Admissions, Merit-Based, Public Universities, STPM, Higher Education, Malaysia, Mustapha Sakmud, Dr Wee Ka Siong, Academic Session
