The Ministry of Higher Education announced on May 22 that 169,803 students who sat for the 2025 SPM exam have been offered places at Malaysian public higher education institutions via the UPUOnline system [1]. These offers came from 235,480 eligible applications submitted by SPM school leavers this year [2, 1].
A total of 91,357 candidates received offers from public universities, 60,947 from polytechnics, 15,844 from community colleges, and 1,655 from institutions under the Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA) Higher Education Division [2, 1]. In all, 363 academic programmes were offered, including 41 certificate, 57 foundation, 264 diploma, and one bachelor's degree programme [2, 1].
Admissions were based on meritocracy, with candidates ranked according to merit scores from highest to lowest [2, 1]. Special pathways were available for 701 persons with disabilities, 310 Orang Asli candidates, 179 athletes, 10,499 from the B40 income group, and 65 candidates from institutions under the Welfare Department (JKM) [2, 1]. For the first time, all academic programmes are open to persons with disabilities if qualified and suitable, aiming to increase accessibility and inclusivity [2, 1].
Students who achieved excellent results of 8As and above in the SPM exam were also offered places [2, 1]. Candidates who did not receive offers may appeal through UPUOnline from May 22 until 5 pm on May 31, 2026 [2, 1].
The appeal process remains open until May 31, allowing candidates additional chances to secure a place based on merit or special considerations.
