PETALING JAYA: There has been no "seat-selling" for places in public higher education institutions, the Public Universities Vice-Chancellors and Rectors Committee (JKNCR) stressed.
Instead, the committee said public universities have consistently increased mainstream, subsidised intake capacities, growing from 79,646 seats in the 2023/2024 academic session to 88,102 for the 2025/2026 session.
“The student admission process to a public university is always subject to academic requirements, merit, programme capacity, accreditation requirements and approval from the relevant university authorities,” JKNCR said in a statement yesterday (June 22).
The committee was responding to a politician’s "baseless" allegations accusing public universities of accepting money in exchange for course placements. JKNCR countered that merit determines eligibility, not financial capacity.
“Every student who is admitted must meet the minimum academic requirements set. For professional and critical programmes such as medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, engineering, accounting, law and education, admission requirements are more stringent and subject to professional body standards,” it said.
The committee also dismissed claims that "open channels" serve as a backdoor into public universities for 30,000 to 60,000 students, calling it a serious accusation that directly questions the integrity of university governance.
It clarified that these open, flexible, and international channels are fully recognised, legitimate pathways that allow universities to offer full-fee academic programmes to meet rising operational costs, fund contract lecturers, and upgrade campus facilities.
Crucially, the Higher Education Ministry stipulates that open-channel intakes can never reduce the pre-allocated quota for mainstream subsidised placements.
JKNCR also rejected claims that underprivileged students are being shut out, noting that nearly 80 per cent of the 88,102 students admitted to bachelor’s degree programmes for the 2025/2026 session come from low-income families.
Furthermore, the ministry and public universities provided over RM115mil through 493 welfare incentives across 2025 and 2026 to ensure no student is denied registration due to financial constraints. JKNCR urged anyone aware of students in need to contact the universities directly.
Finally, the committee noted that infrastructure is expanding to meet growing student numbers, with a target to provide hostel accommodation for 80 per cent of the total public university student body by 2030.
“JKNCR remains committed to defending the integrity, credibility and excellence of the country's higher education system. We call on all parties to discuss higher education issues responsibly, based on facts and avoiding narratives that could undermine public confidence,” it added.
