By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Jan 10: Sarawak Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) holders can apply for Yayasan Sarawak education loans and scholarships without a Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) certificate, provided they achieve at least a B6 grade or higher in the Malay language (BM) subject of the UEC.
To help Chinese independent school students and their parents better understand the application requirements and Sarawak government’s educational initiatives, Yayasan Sarawak will hold a dialogue session on Sept 13.
The session will take place at Yayasan Sarawak and involve Chung Hua Middle Schools No. 1, 3, and 4 in Kuching, Min Lit Secondary School in Batu Kawa, and SMK Serian.
Chairman of the Committee of Management of Kuching Chung Hua Middle Schools No. 1, 3, and 4, Dato Richard Wee, stressed the importance of this initiative, noting that many still misunderstand the eligibility criteria for Yayasan Sarawak’s education loans and scholarships.
“Applicants must score at least a C grade or credit in the SPM Malay Language subject to qualify.
“However, for Chinese independent school students who do not take the SPM, the Sarawak government recognises the UEC, including for public service recruitment. Therefore, achieving a B6 or above in UEC Malay Language fulfills the loan application requirement,” he explained.
Wee made this remarks when addressing the dialogue session with the Ministry of Education, Innovation, and Talent Development (MEITD) at Chung Hua Middle School No. 3 yesterday (Jan 9).
Encouraging students and parents to attend the upcoming session, Wee said Yayasan Sarawak would emphasise this information to provide greater clarity.
“This is to prevent misinformation, misconceptions, and miscommunication during the process. Like any aspect of life, without understanding the process, success is hard to achieve, and failure often leads to blame. The best approach is to understand the process and meet the minimum criteria set by the authorities,” he added.
Wee also highlighted that both the MEITD and Yayasan Sarawak prioritise the university admission letter when considering education loan applications.
Once a student is accepted into a university, the authorities will follow the institution’s standards and admission criteria.
As a member of the Yayasan Sarawak Board, Wee acknowledged the Sarawak government’s many people-centric policies, especially in education.
“However, broader promotion is needed to ensure the public, students, and parents fully understand these initiatives and make informed decisions about their educational pathways,” he said.
He urged the MEITD and Yayasan Sarawak to organise more outreach programmes to raise awareness of government policies.
“I hope the Ministry will expand similar initiatives beyond Kuching to other divisions across Sarawak,” he added. — DayakDaily
