Studying Medicine / MBBS at Private Universities in Malaysia and the Entry Requirements & Salary

How to Become a Doctor in Malaysia?

When choosing the right course to study in Malaysia, one of the criteria that students should look at is the job demand and salary. Presently, there is an oversupply of general practitioners in Malaysia but we have a great need for Specialist Doctors. There are 42 accredited training hospitals in Malaysia with trainees who are doing their housemanship and the waiting time for an available slot is as long as 9 months now or more. Although, there are too many GPs in Malaysia, if you plan to become a Specialist, you should have no worries about a career in the rewarding field of medicine.

Here at EduSpiral Consultant Services, we do our research on the job demand for the careers in Malaysia, Salary Reports, and universities so that we can advise our students based on facts and evidence. Students need to talk to the right education counselors so that you get the right information to help you in making this life-changing decision. We will share about the education pathway from after SPM or O-Levels to becoming a Specialist in Malaysia.

You may also be interested in:

• Top 40 Courses You Should Choose to Study After SPM that has Future High Job Demand & Salary
• After SPM or IGCSE/O-Levels: Top 10 Tips on How to Make the Right Choice for Your Studies
• Choosing the Right Course After SPM or O-Levels Increases Your Chances of Getting a Good Job & Salary in Malaysia
• Explore Your Study Choices After SPM
• Top 10 Degree Courses in Malaysia with Highest Starting Salaries

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Medical Programme or MBBS Education Pathway in Malaysia

After SPM or IGCSE/O-Levels, it will take a total of 9-10 years to be a fully registered doctor, and an additional 3-6 years to become a specialist in Malaysia.

Students after SPM or IGCSE/O-Levels would need to choose the right Pre-University Programme before entering into a Medical Programme or MBBS in Malaysia. STPM and Matriculation are affordable choices but the seats are very limited and highly competitive to enter into the medical degree at public universities or IPTA.

The other pathway for students is the private universities. If you don’t plan to go overseas for your medical degree, you may consider the Foundation in Science at the private university offering the Medical Programme. The Foundation in Science is 1 year in duration and cheaper than the external Pre-University programmes.

A popular external Pre-University programme for entry into the MBBS is the A-Levels. The A-Levels is 18 months in duration and will prepare students well to handle the rigours of the medical programme in Malaysia. The entry requirements for the Pre-University programme and Medical degree are higher therefore students need to check whether you qualify for entry.

Upon completion of the Pre-University programme, students need to choose a university with a medical programme that is recognised and accredited by the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) and MQA.

A 5-year MBBS (Bachelor in Medicine, Bachelor in Surgery) programme that is approved by the Malaysian Medical Council is required in order to qualify for the medical qualifying examination. This exam will help to assess your core knowledge and gauge if you are eligible to practise as a doctor. Passing this exam will enable you to practise medicine in Malaysia after completing the 2-year housemanship and 1-year government service.

Housemanship

In 2015, the government announced that the Ministry of Health will no longer arrange internship placements and that medical graduates are to apply to the government hospitals that offer internship themselves. This may result in a longer wait for internship as there are limited vacancies and an increasing number of medical graduates.

Housemanship is basically the first two years in doctor’s lives upon graduating. As a Houseman, one can earn an average of RM3500 to RM4,400 a month. Upon completing 2 years of housemanship, a houseman would then be promoted to the rank of Medical Officer (MO). New housemen will be placed in the UD43/UD44 bracket. After 3 years of serving as a Medical Officer, they’ll advance to the UD 48 bracket. MOs will then be promoted to UD47/UD48 following another 4 years of service, and UD52 after 3 more years. Additionally, one can move into private practice as an MO, which may pay more.

Medical Specialisations

Upon completing a year as a Medical Officer, you can continue on to specialise which can take you 3-6 years depending on which discipline. In order to be a registered medical specialist in Malaysia, 4-5 years of postgraduate study is needed in addition to 2-4 years supervised training as a specialist.

Some specialisation choices are

• Cardiology (heart)
• Pulmonology (lungs)
• General surgery
• Neurology (brain)
• Dermatology (skin)
• Orthopaedics
• Gynaecology

Average Salary for Medical Doctors in Malaysia:

• Houseman – RM3500 – RM4,400
• New Medical Officer (MO) – RM4,300 – RM5,200
• Medical Officer with 3-6 years experience – RM5,900 – RM6,800
• Medical Officer with 7-9 years experience – RM 6,549 – RM7,449
• Medical Officer with more than 10 years experience – RM6,871 – RM8,200+
• Specialist – RM10,000+ (Government)
• Specialist RM15,000 – RM30,000+ (Private)

Medicine Degree Entry Requirements at Top Private Universities in Malaysia

The entry requirements below serve as a guideline for entry into private universities in Malaysia. The entry requirements will vary from university to university. Please contact us for the exact entry requirements for Taylor’s University, UCSI University and MAHSA University.

Students after SPM or IGCSE/O-Levels will need to complete a Pre-University programme before entering into the Medical Programme or MBBS.

Entry Requirements for the Foundation in Science Leading to Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) programme in Malaysia

A high level of academic attainment is expected.

1. An understanding of science, in particular chemistry and biology, is central to the understanding of Medicine. However, the Council recognizes the diversity of subjects taken by applicants and the contributions of those who entered medical schools with other qualifications.
2. All applicants shall have attained a level of competence in English to enable them to complete the course successfully.
3. All applicants entering the medical programme via matriculation, foundation or pre-medical programme, except those with a degree qualification, STPM or A-level shall have passed and attained a minimum of the following at School Certificate level or its equivalent:

Examinations Requirements

Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia {5PM) 5 Bs each in

• Biology and
• Chemistry and
• Physics and
• Mathematics or Additional Mathematics and
• another subject

General Certificate of Education 5 Bs each in Ordinary (“O”) levels

• Biology and
• Chemistry and
• Physics and
• Mathematics or Additional Mathematics and
• another subject

Note:

i. Any applicants with School Certificates that is not mentioned in this guideline must refer to ‘The List of Entry Qualifications for International Students’ by Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) for the purpose of qualification equivalency;
ii. Combination of SPM and O-Level results is allowed to fulfill the entry requirement as stated in Keputusan Mesyuarat Jawatankuasa lnduk MQA-SPIPTS Bil.1/2009 bertarikh 11 Mei 2009 dan Keputusan Mesyuarat MQA Bil.4/2009 bertarikh 27 Mei 2009 (Kompilasi Dasar Jaminan Kualiti Pendidikan Tinggi {2009 –
2020: Edisi Ketiga) (Pindaan 2).

Unified Examination Certificate (UEC)

All applicants with a Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) who enter a matriculation/ foundation/ pre-medical programme or medical programme, shall have passed and attained a minimum of:

Programme Requirements

Entry to matriculation, foundation or pre-medical programme

B4 each in 3 subjects:

• Biology; and
• Chemistry; and
• Physics or Mathematics or Advanced Mathematics

Entry to medical programme B4 each in 5 subjects:

• Biology; and
• Chemistry; and
• Physics; and
• Mathematics; and
• Advanced Mathematics

Note:

UEC eligibility is only for admission to higher education programs in Private Higher Education Institutions (IPTS) as stated in:

Surat Pekeliling Ketua Pendaftar lnstitusi Pengajian Tinggi Swasta, Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia Bil. 2/2004 – Kelayakan dan Kedudukan ‘Unified Examination Certificate’ (UEC) dated 19 Mac 2004 No. Ruj: KP(JPS)5181/01/02/Jld.3(6)

Higher School Certificate level or its equivalent (STPM and A-Level)

Examinations Requirements

Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia

Grades BBB, ABC or AAC or CGPA 3.0 {STPM} (out of 4.0) in 3 subjects i.e.

• Biology; and
• Chemistry; and
• Physics or Mathematics

General Certificate of Education Grades BBB, ABC or AAC in 3 subjects Advanced {“A”} levels i.e.

• Biology; and
• Chemistry; and
• Physics or Mathematics

Note:

Combination of A-Level or STAM and STPM is allowed to fulfill the entry requirement as stated in Keputusan Mesyuarat Jawatankuasa lnduk MQA-SPIPTS Bil.1/2009 bertarikh 11 Mei 2009 dan Keputusan Mesyuarat MQA Bil.4/2009 bertarikh 27 Mei 2009 (Kompilasi Dasar Jaminan Kualiti Pendidikan Tinggi (2009 –
2020: Edisi Ketiga)

Matriculation, foundation or pre-medical programme or its equivalent

(all applicants must fulfill the requirement at SPM/ 0- Level or its equivalent)

Matriculation or Foundation in Science or Pre- Medical programme

CGPA 3.0 (out of 4.0) in 3 subjects i.e.

• Biology; and
• Chemistry; and
• Physics or Mathematics

Minimum grade for each subject is C (GP 2.0) and Provided the programme is not less than 1 year and completed in the same institution and fulfill the requirement in C3

Australian Pre-University Programmes

• Monash University Foundation PreUniversity Program (MUFY)
• University of New South Wales (UNSW) Foundation
• Western Australia Curriculum Council
• Australian Universities Foundation Programmes
• South Australian Matriculation {SAM) or SACEi
• Australia Year 12
• Australian Matriculation (Ausmat

Aggregate or the equivalent of Bin 3 subjects i.e.

• Biology; and
• Chemistry; and
• Physics or Mathematics

or

80% ATAR provided the subjects include

• Biology
• Chemistry; and
• Physics or Mathematics

Canadian Pre-University Programmes

• Canadian Pre-University (CPU)
• Canadian International Matriculation Program (CIMP / Canadian Grade 12/13
• Ontario Secondary School Diploma Grade12

Average of 80% in 3 subjects i.e.

• Biology; and
• Chemistry; and
• Physics or Mathematics

Diploma International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme

Minimum overall score 33 points, 2 science subjects (Biology and Chemistry) at Higher Level (HL) and Mathematics at HL and attained a minimum score of 5 each in

• Biology; and
• Chemistry; and
• Mathematics

Diploma Entry Requirements into Medical Degree in Malaysia

Diploma in Health CGPA 3.5 (out of 4.0) Sciences or equivalent and Provided the programme is not less than 5 semesters or 2 1/2 years and completed in the same institution and

At SPM/ 0- Level or its equivalent: Minimum 2 Bs in any 2 subjects

• Biology; and/or
• Chemistry; and/or
• Physics

and Credit in 3 subjects

• English; and
• Mathematics or Additional Mathematics;

and

• another subject