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I dont know what course I want to take First, ask yourself what do you like the most. Perhaps you like nice looking flash, website and programs or perhaps you are fascinated by the latest technologies in automotive and cars. This is the first and foremost thing you must first consider. One of the most common mistake people make is to look at the $$ factor and their own results. It is not to say results are not important, it is important but not to an extent itll influence too much of your decision. However, please do note that you shouldnt stray too far away from reality. For example, you found that your interest is in music yet, you cant even identify what a flat/sha rp is in theory. If this is the case, you should then re-evaluate your second interest as trying to study something you have no knowledge in, will get you nowhere near far. I dont know what to do and how to start Well, to start, the first thing you should do is to understand what you like as stated on the first post. After that, try looking at your results and will your results be able to help you to gain entry into the specific institute. For some if their results are slightly off the standard or aren t looking that well, theres always foundation courses available. I have chosen my course and what should I do now? After you have chosen courses that you find interesting, the next thing is to short list all the institutes that are offering them. In this time, lets just leave every other factor out and short list all your choices. Then from your choices, evaluate the details of each institutes for example, are they offering accredited course by LAN? Are they having positive feedbacks or are they just a phony institutes? How well do they rank among the other institutes which are offering the same course? Try sorting out all this and cut out those that dont fulfill those criteria. In my humble opinion, the most important thing is to look at the accreditation of the institute and the course itself.

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I have short listed all the institutes, then? Well, after you have narrowed down your choice, you should then consider one of the most important factor, the $$ factor. This is one of the cruel realities you must face. First thing is to look at your budget including tuition fees, living expenses and miscellaneous expenses and compare them with the information given by the institute, if they go out of your budget, the institute shouldnt stay on your list as regardless of how good the institute is, if you cant support all the fees, then its not really a wise choice. After all this shortlist, you will most probably be left with a few (like 5) choices. A short note to above, even if they are over your budget, you can always check if any of the scholarships are available for such institutes, if yes, then you can try to apply for the scholarship. Well, everyone loves a prestigious institute compared to a cap ayam institute. So I can apply now? Wait just yet, after you have short listed all these, one of the important things is to check this out institutes by visiting them and talking to their course advisor. Never trust too much of the information you found on websites as most likely, they are showing all the nice wonderful information and most probably, you wouldnt see something that is negative. After visiting all the institutes, do check for some online feedbacks from current seniors or you can ask your friends in the institutes about the status or their view on the institute. Generally these are some simple guides to how you can choose an institute. However, do not make these mistakes when you are choosing some of the institute. 1) Do not follow the crowd or your friends in choosing a course or institute, dont worry about friends as youll make new ones once you are there. Following the crowd is a fools theory and it shouldnt be followed. 2) Undeniably, $$ factor is an important factor and its one of the rules guiding your choice. However, please do not choose an institute because it is cheap, do check the credibility and accreditation of the institute. No point getting a cheaper education where no one will hire you as they dont recognize the institute.

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3) Dont give up just because you messed up your SPM results. Remember that results are not everything, its just a measurement tools to see how well you fair in school, stick it to your mind that A doesnt mean everything and results only meant something, not everything. Theres always a second chance for you to improve yourself like foundation courses or form 6.

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Which is better after Form 5? Form 6, Private Colleges or Universities? That's a common dilemma faced by students right after SPM. While it was a trend to continue on to Form 6, face STPM in the face and hopefully secure a position in one of the public universities in the past, time has changed, and things are different nowadays. Why you should go to Form 6? 1. Because you feel unprepared for the college/university world. 2. Because you haven't exactly made up your mind of what specifically you would like to study about. Form 6 buys you 2 years of time to actually determine what is your interest, which in turn will decide your pathway for the next several years. 3. Because you feel that you want a spot in the public university, and you're confident that you can score well enough in STPM to secure the course that you desire. 4. Because of financial problems. Form 6 is a cheaper alternative, obviously. The pros of being in Form 6. 1. Since STPM is rated among the hardest examinations in the world, so you can be more ready for your tertiary education. The most obvious example is STPM v Matriculation. 2. It is worldly recognised and same level as A-Level. So you have chance to enter local universities unlike A-level (very tiny chance). Caution In US Education system, they don't have pre-U. After their students completed their high school, they will sit for SAT (Student Applitude Test) then apply for university. So if you plan to further your education in the United States, think properly because although you can transfer your STPM to US, but the credit hours are limited. The cons of being in Form 6. 1. STPM is rated among the most difficult examinations in the world. The claim is that it's the 3rd hardest. How true is this, I'm not sure. 2. After you've done STPM, and you want to apply for a spot and a course you want in the public university, you won't exactly be guarantee a spot. You might end up getting courses that are totally unheard of, or that you don't what. That will of course pose a new dilemma then. To accept, or to go into the private education sector?

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Why should you enrol in Private colleges/universities 1. Because you've decided what you want to do and specifically, like Electronics Engineering. Nonetheless, colleges do offer general courses such as A-Levels, which will not confine you to a certain field yet, and allows you the freedom to make the choice after 1 or more year of studying. 2. Because some Universities provides their own foundation courses for the faculties, and you're almost always guaranteed a spot in their degree program when you're done with your foundation. The cons of being in Private colleges/universities 1. The cost. That can be overcome by scholarships, or loan such as PTPTN. 2. The recognition of your education institution when you graduate in the future. This could well affect your interview outcomes. A person graduating in a more well known university/college could be picked over you. But then again, having a good result should be able to cancel out that problem. So, once you're done with SPM, sit down and ask yourself several questions. 1. What do you want to do? 2. Are you financially secured to pursue it? 3. Do you think you can cope with it? 4. Ask around about the course, and the institution offering it. Do research, visit education fair and open days.

Credits: i'm a lecturing architect in UTM, been here for almost 5 years now AFTER SPM assuming u're going for tertiary education, here are ur options (applies for both public or private institutions): i. study for STPM ii. study at A-level (or equivalent) iii. study in a matriculation programme iv. study for a diploma v. study for certificate level (last choice, my fren) remember, the objective here is to get ur degree as soon as possible, coz there's no point of settling for anything less. here are the details: i. study for STPM STPM is accepted as an A-level qualification. some places regard this paper as even higher than A-level, but lets not touch on that. STPM is cheap. it's quite broad, covers a variety of subjects, and open for all. u can study/sit for STPM almost everywhere in malaysia. and it's quite easy to get in (compared to my time...) STPM is also internationally recognized, so if u passed ur STPM, u can apply anywhere u want. be advised that u might need an IELTS or TOEFL to prove ur english proficiency (costs around RM400-RM550) ii. study at A-level a lot of institutions now offer A-level papers. i cant really say which institution offers the best. A-level is easier to pass than STPM, covers a variety of subject. the only catch is it can be a little expensive (for those who cant afford to pay by themselves). rate varies to institutions. iii. matriculation this is one of the more popular choice these days. the reason being, once u're in the programme, u just need to pass all exams to be admitted to a degree programme. but this applies only to the university offering the programme. for example: u cant use ur matriculation results from UM to apply for UPM. this programme is not recognized outside of malaysia. so only apply if u're really sure that's the degree u r after. they offer limited subjects, and mostly are tuned/focused to the area of ur degree course.

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iv. diploma

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most universities and institutions in malaysia still offer diploma programme. u can enrol using ur SPM results. this is one of the most common choice amongst those who couldnt get through to STPM or matriculation programmes. the overall costs would be higher too, but with SPM results slightly lower than everybody, this is the best bet. after ur diploma, u can immediately enrol to 2nd year degree programme, and sometimes if u excell, they'll let u skip 2nd year altogether (very special case lah). v. certificate this is ur last choice. certificate usually offers very, very generic skill, and usually does not involve manipulation or implementation of knowledge. (which i forgot to mention: skill and knowledge is two very different things). but due to its short duration, some of u might opt to take a certificate to boost ur application. these can be very basic certs, for example: "cert of basic PC assembly and repair"; "cert of ledger management"; or "cert of autoCAD" (just to name a few). usually the course range between 3 days to 6 months, depending on the depth. but this will seriously BOOST ur applications.