THERE are approximately 250,000 students from the public and private higher educational institutions of learning in Malaysia who are required to undergo industrial internships every year. The requirement was made compulsory by the Higher Education Ministry in 2010.
In 2025, the current government mandated that companies that hire expatriates offer up to three internships under the National Structured Internship Programme for each expatriate hired. The policy became effective on Jan 1, 2026, and this is expected to create over 100,000 structured, paid placements annually.
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