Ringgit fall harms Malaysians studying overseas!

Self-financed students most affected and face severe financial pressure to pay tuition fees and cost of living compared to sponsored students.

KOSMO! reports that Malaysian students in higher education institutions are badly affected by the drop in ringgit value.

According to a student pursuing her Masters of Science in Biotechnology at Northumbria University, Sharon Joseph, two pounds used to be equivalent to approximately RM10 (enough to purchase a quart of milk, a loaf of bread and half a dozen eggs) but now for the same food amount she needs to add as much as RM2.20.

"Perhaps the difference is not significant, but when making large payments such as tuition fees or accommodation, the difference becomes huge," she told Bernama recently.

The ringgit fell to RM3.90 against the US dollar on Aug. 6, for the first time since the Asian financial crisis 17 years ago.

Sharon explained, based on the current exchange rate, her family now has to add RM 1,000 to enable her to pay off tuition fees.

According to data collected by the Ministry of Higher Education, there were 15,700 Malaysian students pursuing higher education in the United Kingdom (UK)  in 2014 compared to 15,500 in 2013.

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