Malaysian Students

BANGKOK, September 2, 2015—The Government of Malaysia’s Council for the People’s Trust (MARA) Bureau has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Institute of International Education to place 25 top scholars from Malaysia at U.S. colleges and universities.

Backed by the financial support of the U.S. Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, IIE will advise and place the Malaysian students in U.S. undergraduate degree programs throughout the United States beginning in January 2016. Once they enroll in the universities, the students’ education will be funded through a scholarship awarded by the MARA Bureau.

Each student will have completed the prestigious MARA American Degree Preparatory Program (MADPP), which provides a select group of Malaysian students with ten months of intensive training before they depart for undergraduate degree studies in the United States. In addition to intensive English study, TOEFL prep, and SAT prep, each MADPP student engages in community outreach as part of the curriculum’s social service component.

IIE’s New York-based University Placement Services division will match each of the 25 selected MARA Scholars with a U.S. university that fits the student’s area of academic interest. In September IIE and EducationUSA advisors in Malaysia will hold a workshop in Kuala Lumpur to provide information and advice to the selected MARA Scholars on developing a strong application for U.S. institutions. IIE’s knowledgeable placement specialists have extensive expertise in placing international students and scholars in graduate, undergraduate and training programs at higher education institutions in the United States and around the world.

The MARA Scholars Program will be overseen by IIE’s Southeast Asia office, based in Bangkok, Thailand, which was opened in 1962 as IIE’s first office in Asia. The office administers scholarship programs for both Asia and U.S.-based foundations, conducts outreach throughout the Asia Pacific region on behalf of academic institutions and programs, and engages teachers, professors, and students through its English assessment and testing services.

About the Institute of International Education

The Institute of International Education is a world leader in the international exchange of people and ideas. IIE designs and implements programs of study and training for students, educators, young professionals and trainees from all sectors with funding from government agencies, foundations, and corporations. An independent, not-for-profit organization founded in 1919, IIE has a network of 19 offices and affiliates worldwide and over 1,400 member institutions. IIE Southeast Asia was opened in 1962 in Bangkok, Thailand as the first office of IIE in Asia.