Malaysia is made up of 2 separate regions: the peninsula on the Asian continent, and Sabah and Sarawak, located on the island of Borneo. Malaysia has 13 states and 3 federal territories, the latter being the capital city of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya. The country has 3 major population groups, i.e. the Malaysians, the Chinese and the Indian. The national religion is Islam.
The mixed profile of the population is also reflected in the education system, evinced by both primary and secondary schools that provide instruction in Malay, Chinese and Tamil. Depending on the higher education institute, tertiary education is provided in English or Malay.
Malaysia aims to become a regional centre for education. This has resulted in a considerable increase in the number of public higher-education institutions through the establishment of new polytechnics, universities and university colleges. The private education sector has also seen an increase in the number of private universities and other institutions.
Primary, secondary and higher education all fall under the responsibility of the Ministry of Education. The Ministry of Higher Education was responsible for higher education during the period 2004-2013. After its merger with the Ministry of Education it was renamed the Department of Higher Education.
Since 2003, the 6 years of primary education have been compulsory in Malaysia.
The school year begins in January and ends in November. The academic year starts in September.