Kuala Lampur, Aug. 25 -- STPM graduates are the orphans of Malaysia's education system. Their plight, as recently highlighted byYB Sim Tze Tzin in his commendable call for a Selamatkan STPM Taskforce, merits a considerate and effective response in line with the 13th Malaysia Plan's social mobility pillar.

The STPM is a two-year pathway to university, available at numerous schools and a few Form 6 colleges across the country, culminating in a challenging externally-administered national exam.

Matriculation colleges offer a one-year programme, teaching a narrower syllabus in a fully residential setting, where the examination is coordinated internally by the Ministry of Education.

In 2023, 41,548 students took the STPM exam, while 25,239 ...