Most Commonly Asked Questions About Scholarships

There are many scholarships to choose from but there has been an air of uncertainty to apply for one. Students are still puzzled on whether their scholarship applications would be rejected or not. Perhaps not many know of the misconceptions and truths surrounding scholarship applications. It’s high time that we from afterschool.my answer those burning questions!

1. Can I apply for scholarships using my trial/forecast SPM results?

It would help save a lot of time if you apply a scholarship with your forecast results but it depends on the institution, though

Yes, you can. However, it should be noted that these scholarships are limited to pre-university courses at certain universities only. These pre-university courses include: A-Levels, SAM, Foundation & certain Diploma programmes. Also, this depends on the institution in which you apply to, so do check with them.

2. When will the big government scholarships (JPA, Petronas, etc.) be released?

For more information on these scholarships you can only check it after the SPM results are released

These scholarships will only be released AFTER the official SPM results are, usually in the first or second week of March. Please stay tuned for this year’s official SPM results day to be announced.

3. Does JPA still sponsor students to go overseas? Do they still sponsor any course the student chooses?

There are many scholarships that sponsor students to study overseas so you need to check their terms and conditions

Well, the answer is yes, but with very specific terms. First, there are FOUR different kinds of JPA Scholarships, and out of that only TWO are allotted for students to go overseas, one is specifically for studying engineering in countries such as Japan, Korea, France and Germany. The other one is for students to study any course they want to, BUT this is limited to the TOP 20 students in SPM of that year ONLY.

4. How do I apply for overseas scholarships that I see online, which are open to Malaysians?

Before applying for a scholarship from an overseas university, you need to apply for their admission first

The first thing you need to know is, most scholarships offered by institutions overseas will require you to first gain admission into the college/university. Take for example the scholarship offered by the University of Manchester, UK. You would FIRST need to apply to that institution, gain admission before being able to apply for their scholarship.

5. I can’t find any scholarships that are for my course!

It’s best to check with your university for any scholarships regarding you meet their requirements

Well, what many universities in Malaysia offer now are scholarships and tuition waivers, so your best bet would be to check the university you’re already studying at to see if you qualify. All of them award it based on your grades, so if you do well then, you’ll be set!

6. I’ve heard many people don’t get scholarships even if they have good grades! Why is this so?

Make sure you fill your scholarship application forms properly and double check for any errors to avoid getting it rejected

This may be because many scholarships have very strict process on how to apply. If you make a mistake on your application form, or miss out on any document, then your application may be thrown out. What mistakes do we mean? You can check out the links of the articles at the bottom of the page and ensure you don’t make any mistakes that would jeopardise your application.

7. My grades meet the minimum requirements to apply, but they aren’t amazing. Should I still apply?

Even if you don’t think that you did very well in your exams, you can still try and apply for a scholarship. Who knows? You won’t get it if you don’t try!

While scholarships do aim to get the very best students, many look for much more. More often than not, there will be an interview involved, and once that happens, the selection process will be based on how much you impress them rather than just your grades. In other words, you have nothing to lose by applying, so go ahead and do just that!

8. I’m in the 2nd/3rd year of my course, are there any scholarships meant for me?

It’s not too late to apply for a scholarship as some of them can cover up to 100% of your tuition fees so keep a look out for them

While there are limited scholarships meant for students in the middle of certain courses, once again your best bet would be to check with the university you are studying in, as many offer scholarships and tuition waivers for their students who have achieved goods grades. These scholarships can cover up to 100% of your fees, so do keep a look out!

Enjoyed this article? Then, go check out these articles:

5 Questions to Answer in Order to Secure that Scholarship

The Most Common Mistakes Students Make When Applying for a Scholarship