Straight-A Student With 3.96 CGPA Gets Rejected By Local Unis But Is Accepted Into UK
He was offered to study Manufacturing or Mechanical Engineering at two UK universities.
By May Vin Ang — 28 Sep 2022, 06:22 PM
A Malaysian graduate recently shared his disappointment on Twitter after not being offered any admissions to public universities despite his excellent academic results
Showing his impressive straight As and CGPA of 3.96 in an academic slip, Twitter user @thefirdauslee wrote that he did not receive a single offer from the Ministry of Higher Education's central application portal, UPUOnline (UPU), when results were released on Sunday, 25 September.
He had, however, received university offers through the UK-based application portal, Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS).
"My results. UPU vs UCAS. I don't get it. What's wrong with UPU. Not even one?" the polytechnic diploma graduate questioned.
He accompanied his tweet with screenshots of his results, the rejection notice on UPU, as well as the three offers on UCAS to study Manufacturing or Mechanical Engineering at two UK universities.
The graduate's tweet has since gone viral, garnering over 14,600 likes and 5,400 shares
Many netizens were shocked at how such excellent results could not land a student a place in the country's local institutions.
Some others also shared their own experiences and theorised why he did not get a spot, as well as gave him advice on what to do next.
"I, too, got a 3.25 CGPA in STPM but didn't get a single offer. There's a problem with UPU. My other friends that had CPGAs under 3.0 got offers," said a Twitter user.
"It's definitely hard for a polytechnic student to get into the public university of their choice," opined another.
"You have to apply to universities that give polytechnic students priority. Requesting for a place at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), University of Malaya (UM), and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) is really difficult. Even my friend who is on the dean's list with a high MUET band had to appeal three times before he got into UiTM."
Many also advised him to apply for less popular courses, or apply directly to the public universities to get their attention, or if he could afford it, private universities.
"Mind to share what courses you applied for? Because if you apply to courses that demand 4.0 CGPAs, you have to compete with matriculation and STPM students. That's the reality. For diploma graduates, you should apply directly to the university to book a spot," a netizen suggested.
Grateful for the advice, Firdaus told netizens that he is still trying to appeal his case with UPU and will continue applying locally to study Mechanical Engineering, before considering studying abroad
The 22-year-old from Pahang also told SAYS that he did not intend to fault anyone with his tweet, as he was only expressing his disappointment after not getting a place in a public university here.
"I was upset that I didn't get a single offer, that cannot be denied, but there are many other students who have the same fate as me," he said.
"We students know how competitive it is in education, and while it is exciting, there will also be those who end up upset."
He, however, stated that something about the university selection system had to be changed. In the meantime, he will continue trying to appeal and apply directly to local universities.
