‘We have made the university, as a right, to be in, especially for Malays’ — Businessman Shamsul Saad says it’s ‘one of the worst things happened in Malaysian education system’

Malaysian businessman Shamsul Saad has ignited a long-standing debate about university admission in Malaysia, stating that it should not be considered an automatic right, particularly for Malays. The businessman, who hosts The Gutshot Podcast under the nickname Sam, made these remarks in a TikTok video uploaded on September 7. He claimed that making university admission a right "for everybody, especially for Malays" has been one of the worst things to happen to the Malaysian education system.

Malaysia's public university admissions system currently uses a combination of academic and co-curricular scores, with Bumiputera preferences—mainly referring to Malays and indigenous peoples of Sabah and Sarawak—remaining through several education pathways. These policies were introduced following the 1969 racial riots and the subsequent New Economic Policy in the 1970s to address deep economic and education gaps between ethnic groups.

The Federal Constitution also provides a constitutional basis for these reservations involving education.

While the government has shifted towards meritocracy in higher education, with a 2002 change that replaced the old 55:45 Bumiputera-to-non-Bumiputera ratio with a merit-based system, affirmative action policies remain in place. Critics argue that race-based routes can disadvantage other qualified students, while supporters defend the policies based on historical disparities in education and opportunities for Bumiputera communities.

The debate surrounding university admissions in Malaysia therefore centers on how to balance academic merit with policies aimed at addressing unequal starting points.