University of Malaya

The University of Malaya was founded as a Malaysian-based public university in Kuala, Lumpur, in 1949. It is the oldest Malaysian institution of higher education. In the context of rankings, the University of Malaya is one of the Top 100 Universities world in the QS 2026 rankings.

As per web sources, the University of Malaya acceptance rate is around 34% making it somewhat selective for admissions. There are 27,000+ students at UM. The total no. of UG international students at UM is 1,600+ and PG international students is 8,700+.

University of Malaya Facts

The University of Malaya is a premier research university. At this university, there are 17 faculties and research centres, in the academic disciplines like Arts, Humanities, and Sciences. Given below are some of the facts about UM-

University of Malaya History

First founded in 1949 and re-established in 1962, University of Malaya is a public research university and is based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. After a legislation being passed by the Straits Legislative Council in June 1905, a medical school was established to fulfil the demand for medical assistants in government hospitals. In 2012, the University of Malaya was granted autonomy by the Ministry of Higher Education.

Check out the below video of University of Malaya for more Information:

• Application deadline for UG courses for international students is Aug 30, 2026. 
• The University of Malaya has announced a scholarship - PTE x Universiti Malaya Scholarship 2026 for international students of worth £3,000 (Around INR 4 L). 

The University of Malaya was founded as a Malaysian-based public university in Kuala, Lumpur, in 1949. It is the oldest Malaysian institution of higher education. In the context of rankings, the University of Malaya is one of the Top 100 Universities world in the QS 2026 rankings.

As per web sources, the University of Malaya acceptance rate is around 34% making it somewhat selective for admissions. There are 27,000+ students at UM. The total no. of UG international students at UM is 1,600+ and PG international students is 8,700+.

University of Malaya Facts

The University of Malaya is a premier research university. At this university, there are 17 faculties and research centres, in the academic disciplines like Arts, Humanities, and Sciences. Given below are some of the facts about UM-

University of Malaya History

First founded in 1949 and re-established in 1962, University of Malaya is a public research university and is based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. After a legislation being passed by the Straits Legislative Council in June 1905, a medical school was established to fulfil the demand for medical assistants in government hospitals. In 2012, the University of Malaya was granted autonomy by the Ministry of Higher Education.

Check out the below video of University of Malaya for more Information:

For UG students, UM does not offer any scholarship. A PTE x Universiti Malaya 2026 Scholarship has been announced for international students at the Uni of Malaya of GBP 3,000 or INR 4 L. Check below some of the scholarships offered by the University of Malaya for international students.

University of Malaya offers a range of undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses for international students every year. The University of Malaya teaches all programmes in English language, unless specified. In general, the Uni of Malaya offers 150+ Master's courses and 80+ UG courses. Study areas at this university are Law, Engineering, Science, Medicine, etc.

University of Malaya Popular Programs

Some of the popular programs of the University of Malaya include MBA, Master of Management, Master of Mechanical Engineering, etc. The duration of the PG courses is 1 - 2 years.

University of Malaya has a strong global alumni network of more than 115,000 alumni members coming from around the world and have shown contribution in their respective fields. Some of the notable alumni members at the university are given as follows:

Name	Profession	Photograph
Mahathir bin Mohamad	Malaysian Politician
Anwar bin Ibrahim	Malaysian politician
Rosmah Mansor	Second wife of former Prime Minister of Malaysia
Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah binti Haji Mohamad Ali	Malaysian doctor and former chancellor of the Multimedia University
Mahiaddin bin Md. Yasin	Malaysian politician who served as the eighth Prime Minister of Malaysia
Sellapan Ramanathan DUT PJG	Singaporean politician and civil servant
Ungku Zeti Akhtar binti Ungku Abdul Aziz	7th Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia

University of Malaya has a Career Development Center that provides career skills to the future graduate students of University of Malaya such as making career decisions, work finding process, and training or skills that are able to aid future graduate students in the preparatory process to face the professional world. Some of the career services and activities at the university are given as follows:

Indian students who want to study Graduate courses, the first-year University of Malaya tuition fee is between INR 8 L - INR 14 L. UM fees for MBA course is between INR 11 L - INR 14 L. Whereas, for UG international students, it may range between RM 65,100 - RM 130,100 (Around INR 15.3 L - INR 30 L) , with Bachelor of Dentistry course being very expensive RM 655,000 (Around INR 1.5 Cr).

Cost of Living

As per Numbeo 2024 Cost of Living Index, Malaysia has one of the lowest cost of living indexes in Southeast Asia, just 34.4. The rent on campus at UM may range between RM 700 - RM 1,500 per month (Around INR 16.4k - INR 35.2k). The total cost of living for an Indian student in Malaysia could be around INR 39k per month (inclusive of all the expenses.).

• Application deadline for UG courses for international students is Aug 30, 2026. 
• The University of Malaya has announced a scholarship - PTE x Universiti Malaya Scholarship 2026 for international students of worth £3,000 (Around INR 4 L). 

Indian applicants can take part in the University of Malaya admissions by applying via the official portal of the university. To complete the admission process, Indian students have to pay the application fee of MYR 300 (Around INR 7k).

University of Malaya Application Deadlines 2026

There are 2 intakes of the University of Malaya - October and June intake. These intakes varies as per the course levels. Here are some of the application deadlines for the University of Malaya for international students enrolled in UG and PG courses-

University of Malaya Eligibility

Students must provide their results for IELTS, TOEFL and PTE. Some of the documents required to apply to the Uni of Malaya are-

• Passport
• Transcripts of previous studies
• National id card
• English language proficiency certificate
• Research proposal (if required)

Postgraduate Admission Requirements

For admission to the PG courses of the Uni of Malaya, Indian students should have a Bachelor's degree with a minimum GPA of 3.0 (exceptions applicable). Also, students have to submit English language score report.

Note: The UG admission requirements may be subject to course available at the University of Malaya.

As per Shiksha Popularity Ranking, the University of Malaya ranking stands at #1 in 2026 at national level. Also, the university is ranked #205 in the world by Shiksha Popularity Ranking 2026. Moreover, a few of the University of Malaya courses are also ranked by Shiksha Popularity Ranking as mentioned below-

By Other Ranking Bodies

Apart from Shiksha Popularity ranking, QS has also ranked the university globally. The University of Malaya QS ranking is #58 in 2026. The University of Malaya ranking stood at #201-250 by THE in 2026, globally.

University of Malaya has a single campus. The main campus of University of Malaya spans 750 acres. Malaya Uni is known to have a vibrant and diverse student life for international students by offering facilities such as career advising, dining, residential facilities and recreational activities.

Campus Life

Students can check the food outlets at the University of Malaya. There are many eateries within the Faculty of Medicine and University Malaya Medical Centre such as MediCafe, Cardio Brew, O'Briens Cafe, UMMC Food Court, etc. The university also offers housing options, mostly for UG students. The room types include single room, twin sharing room, quadraple sharing room, etc. The housing prices at the University of Malaya for UG students can range between per semester RM 915 - RM 1,960 (INR 21k - INR 46k). There are sports facilities too at the Uni of Malaya such as-

• Tennis court
• Swimming pool
• Basketball courts
• Jogging track
• Gym