3 Reasons Enrolling in Foundation Early Could Be The Best Decision You’ll Ever Make

Deciding one’s pre-university path can be a stressful ordeal for any graduating high school student. The choice between various pre-university programmes, or even the idea of taking a gap year can be rather contentious – and with the SPM 2022 exams scheduled for March, students will find themselves short of the time to properly consider their pre-university options.

Enrolling for foundation studies can be an effective path forward for soon-to-be SPM graduates, with a focus on a smooth transition into a degree programme of choice. This is especially true for students who already have an idea of which academic field they want to pursue.

Furthermore, the adage of ‘the sooner the better’ certainly applies here – there are several advantages to applying early for a foundation programme. This article aims to provide insight into some of the benefits of an early foundation course application.

Stay ahead of your peers

MMU offers several 12-month foundation programmes starting in April each year; comparatively, an A-Levels qualification typically takes about one-and-a-half to two years. As a result, these foundation students will inherently be a couple months ahead of their A-level peers – on top of the fact that there will also be contemporaries who decided to take a gap year. The main advantage to this can be boiled down to one primary attribute: experience.

Experience will undoubtedly become invaluable as you advance throughout your career. MMU’s fast-track foundation courses accelerates students’ progress through higher education, allowing individuals to enter the workforce ahead of his peers. This not only means these students will be able to begin earning an income earlier, but more importantly, have the opportunity to begin accumulating valuable work experience. 

It may take some time before the benefits of building experiences becomes immediately apparent. However, a few years into your profession, the wealth of experience will serve as the cornerstone of your resume – helping you stand out amongst your peers to future employers.

Maintain study habits and motivation

Studies have shown that students who enter tertiary education late tend to suffer from lower rate of degree completion. Just like how exercising helps in sustaining and improving muscle mass, the brain must also be used continuously to maintain a higher level of academic performance. 

MMU’s foundation programme provides students with a particularly effective environment to properly maintain the study habits and routines they have developed throughout high school. For example, certain foundation courses at MMU such as business and engineering include at least one mandatory English unit per trimester as well as a Critical Thinking subject in the second trimester. The added intensity will ensure that student’s study skills will be put to good use as they tackle a variety of different assignments, written essays and examinations, keeping them in prime condition when they eventually progress into university. 

This will be especially helpful for those pursuing careers in technical fields such as physics and mathematics. As these qualifications usually incorporate many niche theoretical processes and techniques, a lack of practise will inevitably cause students to initially struggle recalling these concepts – causing them to fall behind from the very beginning.

Another benefit of taking a foundation course immediately after high school is its ability to help maintain a student’s momentum throughout their academic journey. It allows students the opportunity to continue progressing towards their dream career, and this will keep them energised and motivated to excel in their studies.

Cut down on decision-making stress

High schoolers who are already pre-occupied with their SPM exams can find themselves struggling to cope with the many decisions required when applying for higher education. Furthermore, many prospecting students can find themselves overwhelmed by the weight of their decision and end up putting off their application indefinitely – fearing the consequences of making a poor choice.

Enrolling in a foundation programme ahead of time, such as with trial results, relieves students of decision fatigue and allows them to get the application out of the way early. As a result, they will be allowed to fully dedicate their efforts into producing their best possible grades in their SPM exams. 

Additionally, the application process is filled with many important micro-decisions after the examination period as well. This includes research for appropriate housing, finding the best transportation options, calculating the necessary finances, etc. Enrolling early allows students more time to carefully consider these choices after their exams, so that they are fully able to maximise their study experience.

In the long term, enrolling to a foundation early can turn out to be a strong investment towards your career progression. We encourage SPM students this year to apply using their trial results as soon as possible. 

Multimedia University (MMU) is currently offering SPM students an Early Bird promo where RM500 will be waived off their tuition fee when students apply using their forecast results. A further RM500 discount will be granted for candidates who obtain 6As and above in their final SPM results. 

For more information, call 1-300 800 668 or visit mmu.edu.my