Happy Teachers’ Day! My love to all the teachers and lecturers who have been in my life and played a part in making me the person I am today. Have YOU ever had such a great school teacher than you’re now inspired and want to be a teacher? Well then here are some paths you can take:
1. SPM – IPG – SK
This is the easiest way to become an educator. If you’ve achieved excellent results during your SPM (4/5 As and above) and have carried out excellent clep test prep for CLEP, you can apply for admission to the Institut Perguruan Malaysia (IPGM) and train for a year (preparation) with an additional 4 years for the Bachelor of Education programme. You will then be able to serve as a teacher in a Primary School (Sekolah Rendah). To also improve the quality of teacher education, the Malaysian Education Ministry (KPM) also provides dedicated path of immediate interview to those who scored a straight As during their SPM.
2. SPM – Matriculation – University – SMK
If teaching Primary School kids isn’t what you want, and you want to teach in Secondary Schools, you can apply for admission to matriculation colleges. And of course, all your subjects need to be credited in your SPM results. Once you’ve achieved excellent results during your matriculation, you can apply for universities that offer programmes for teaching or education.
3. SPM – STPM – University – SMK
If you want to become secondary school teachers or teachers of subjects taught in secondary schools, such as Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Economics, Commerce and others, then you can choose this pathway.
4. Diploma – University – SMK
If your path has led you to taking on a diploma after SPM, then study one in a local public university that offers teaching or education. Then apply further to study a degree specialised in teaching and/or education. You need an additional 4 years to complete your studies at this level. But there are also universities that allow some subjects to be exempted, hence you can also complete in a shorter amount of time.
5. Degree – DPLI – SMK
If you already have a degree, but just not in the teaching field, then you can apply for DPLI (Diploma Perguruan Lepasan Ijazah) courses. The difference between the more commonly known KPLI and the DPLI is that the DPLI is implemented in universities and not in IPG. DPLI is also for those who want to be teachers in secondary school whilst those you want to be teachers in primary schools take the KPLI.
6. Degree – KPLI – SK
KPLI (Kursus Perguruan Lepasan Ijazah) is very common path we here for those who want to be primary school teachers. It is implemented in IPG where you will study this for 1 year. However, due to the number of teachers and subjects being disproportionate and excessive, ISMP (Ijazah Sarjana Muda Perguruan) graduates do not end up getting any posting and the programme has reduced its intakes. This programme is also limited to critical subjects such as English, KHB, Special Education, and many others which are in demand. And if you’re up for this, be aware that competition is fierce!
7. Degree – JQAF – SK
If you have a degree in Islamic studies, Arabic or anything related to these two, then you can try this path where you will be given the opportunity to become a LQAF teacher in a designated school. During the school holidays, you must also be enrolled for studies for 2 years, and after this programme, there will be another reposting. If you’re lucky (and if there’s vacancy), your posting may be to the former school.
8. Degree – MRSM
You can also try this path to become an MRSM teacher (Maktab Rendah Sains MARA) – especially if you have something to do with MARA. You can be a former student, a former scholarship recipient… basically anything related to MARA education. Depending on the subject vacancy and demand, you can find advertisement at specific MRSMs from time to time for application instructions. This teaching programme are conducted during the school holidays and of course, priority will be given to former MARA scholarship recipients.
9. Degree – Private Schools
If you’ve tried all your other options and didn’t get lucky, then you can try this path and apply as a private school/international school teacher. The requirements will be more selective on the subject, teacher qualification, and also other strengths. This is also a really great path for those who want a challenge in their career with more lucrative salaries. The only risky thing about being teachers in these schools is that your contract might not be renewed if you’re not performing well – which honestly should be the case for all schools, but that’s my personal opinion.
10. Degree – Teach for Malaysia – SMK / SK
You can also take this path and join Teach For Malaysia NGO which is active in preparing teachers for critical subjects in schools that are in need of teachers. If you join this programme, you will be filtered and given a school posting. During the weekend, you will have to attend a kursus pemantapan perguruan, and after your 2-year contract is over, you can choose to continue to become a teacher. This programme is also sanctioned by the Ministry of Education and even more actively promoted through the social networking site in the past 2 years.
Header image source from here.
