PETALING JAYA: A Matriculation top scorer is devastated after failing to secure her lifelong ambition to study law despite scoring perfect results both academically and in extra-curricular activities.
The 19-year-old had obtained a 4.0 CGPA and a total merit score of 100% for co-curricular activities, but she was offered to a place in accounting under the Unit Pusat Universiti (UPU) pathway, which was her fourth choice.
MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong said the story of 19-year-old Matriculation graduate known as Lee, was not just about shattered dreams, but about fairness and Malaysia’s promise to its youths.
“When even a perfect scorer is denied the chance to pursue her calling, what message are we sending to the next generation?
“Education must be a fair playing field in this country. If our system is broken, then it must be fixed. Lee’s story is not hers alone, it belongs to every hardworking student in Malaysia who dares to dream,” said Dr Wee in a Facebook posting on Sunday (Sept 14).
Dr Wee was recounting an incident on Saturday (Sept 13) night where he met the 19-year-old girl in Melaka together with Klebang assemblyman Datuk Lim Ban Hong and state exco member Ngwe Hee Sem.
The Ayer Hitam MP said the 19-year-old failed to secure a place to study law under the UPU pathway at Universiti Malaya (UM), Universiti Kebangsaan (UKM) and Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) despite obtaining a 4.0 CGPA and a total merit score of 100 for co-curricular activities.
“All three universities rejected her. Instead she was offered a place in Accounting at Universiti Putra Malaysia - her fourth choice, far from the dream she had worked so hard for,” said Dr Wee.
Under the UPU pathway, fees are significantly lower than the university’s open channel Saluran Terbuka Universiti Awam (SATU) system.
Dr Wee, in quoting the 19-year-old, said that for a Malaysian Chinese student, there are only three options to enter a public university to study law - UM, UKM and UUM.
Dr Wee cited Lee as saying that she included other courses in her application because she was required to fill up all 12 choices provided by UPU, adding that she is not allowed to appeal against UPU’s decision.
Dr Wee quoted Lee as saying, "YB, I gave everything. I scored full marks. I handled the interviews well. I truly believed I had a chance. But now my dream is gone. I wanted to be a lawyer since I was a little girl… Why was I not chosen? Were all those who got in also perfect scorers? If not, how is this fair?
"My family is not wealthy and I have other younger siblings. Private university is simply impossible for us as I do not want to add more burden to my parents. Perhaps I must accept my fate, give up on Law, and settle for Accounting. But this will remain the greatest regret of my life.”’ Dr Wee quoted Lee as saying.
“In that moment, I had no words,” said Dr Wee in response to Lee’s remarks.
Dr Wee then asked if UM, UKM and UUM will allow Lee to study law through the SATU intake channel in the coming days.
“The catch is, while it’s still admission into the same programme, the tuition fees through direct intake amount to RM90,000 — ten times higher than through UPU!”
Dr Wee said Lee was also not allowed to make an appeal to UPU as the Higher Education Ministry had offered her a fourth choice to study Accounting.
“Looks like she can only wait for a miracle to happen…
“It seems that today, September 14, will be the turning point in Lee’s future. I wish her nothing but success ahead!” said Dr Wee.
On Monday (Sept 8), STPM student Edward Wong Yi Xian, who achieved a perfect CGPA of 4.0 and a near-perfect 99.9% overall merit score, claimed his application to do an accounting course was rejected by UM.
He raised his grievances to Dr Wee after all six of his applications to public universities via UPU – including UM, UKM, UPM, and USM – were rejected without an interview.
He was instead offered a place in a management course at USM, his fifth choice.
MCA leaders have urged a review of admission procedures for transparency and fairness as public universities must not divert from their mission of nurturing the future generation through equitable access to education.
