LEE JI SIAN

Primary School Achievement Test, also known as Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (commonly abbreviated as UPSR; Malay), is a national examination taken by all students in Malaysia at the end of their sixth year in primary school before they leave for secondary school. It is prepared and examined by the Malaysian Examinations Syndicate (Lembaga Peperiksaan Malaysia), an agency that constitutes the Ministry of Education. Starting from 2016,students in national schools (sekolah kebangsaan) are required to take six subjects. Students in Chinese and Tamil national-type schools (sekolah jenis kebangsaan) are required to take two additional language subjects, totalling eight subjects. Multiple choice questions are tested using a standardised optical answer sheet that uses optical mark recognition for detecting answers. This exam is held annually on the first Monday of September. The score is calculated based on a bell curve, thus the passing grade is reflected by the yearly performance.

Penilaian Menengah Rendah (commonly abbreviated as PMR; Malay for Lower Secondary Assessment) was a Malaysian public examination taken by all Form Three students in both government and private schools throughout the country from independence in 1957 to 2013. It was formerly known as Sijil Rendah Pelajaran (SRP; Malay for Lower Certificate of Education). It was set and examined by the Malaysian Examinations Syndicate (Lembaga Peperiksaan Malaysia), an agency under the Ministry of Education. This standardised examination was held annually during the first or second week of October. The passing grade depended on the average scores obtained by the candidates who sat for the examination.

The Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM), or the Malaysian Certificate of Education, is a national examination taken by all fifth-year secondary school students in Malaysia, equivalent to eleventh grade in America's K–12 (education). It is set and examined by the Malaysian Examinations Syndicate (Lembaga Peperiksaan Malaysia). SPM is equivalent to the O-Level and is the second last public examination at the secondary school level before the entry into a tertiary level education at a university or other higher education institutions. The Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM), being a pre-university study and equivalent to the A-Level, is the last public examination at the secondary school level. Other available pre-university studies in Malaysia include matriculation, foundation study, A-Level, etc., which are conducted at a college or university.

The Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM, English: Malaysian Higher School Certificate) is a pre-university examination taken by students in Malaysia. It was formerly known as the Higher School Certificate (HSC). The HSC was the precursor to the GCE A Level in the UK, and is still the name of the pre-university examination in some states in Australia. The STPM is set and run by the Malaysian Examinations Council since 1982, which also runs the Malaysian University English Test (MUET) since 1999, unlike UPSR, PMR and SPM, which are all set and examined by the Malaysian Examinations Syndicate, both of whom, however, are under the Ministry of Education. STPM is one of the two major pre-university systems for admission to Malaysian public universities. The other is a one-year matriculation programme conducted by the Ministry of Education. STPM is not the only qualification accepted besides the matriculation programme and Malaysian Higher Islamic Religious Certificate (STAM). Candidates technically may apply for admission to degree-level courses with a variety of pre-university examinations considered equivalent with STPM, including A-Level. All those applying for universities, however, must have taken the MUET. STPM is internationally recognised by many universities, especially those within the Commonwealth of Nations as well as the United States and the Republic of Ireland. Most universities consider STPM results equivalent to GCE A-Level results.