got a level result last month, wanted to go nus/ntu physics but now headache already because my math and further math got A instead of A* , thankfully physics and chemistry still A* , now only hoping can get in based on their new holistic admission thing, but problem is i have no co curricular, only chance is to try to convince them i like physics very much in the questions they ask in the admissions form

still going to apply, but since i heard most ppl get into nus/ntu with 4A*, anything less cannot

oxford cambridge i most likely cannot, and thanks to my math A instead of A* i dont meet requirement for imperial college london, and dont want to go uk for no name university

australia national university ranking not nearly as high as nus/ntu or any uk uni, i dont think monash malaysia even offer physics course

what can do?

Congrats on A*A*AA

I mean you can still get in.
I means cash that matters now.

Do remember that Malaysia do offers UPUOnline (Gov Intake / Subsidized Fees) and UM OneChannel Direct Intake. (RM 50k - 90k +++ ) depending on your course.
We do have UM, USM, UTM, UKM, UPM for the Research Universities.

If you feel the grass is much greener, I would suggest try looking into Ivy League and how to apply there.

Do note Physics is just a degree, albeit it is a wide coverage one. What matters is can your degree pay for your bills. So please pick your specialization early on.

If you don't mind paying like RM 500-1k for a A-Level Maths resit to bump it up to A*, I think go ahead.

But I felt your current A-Level would land you to most places outside of Malaysia.

Maybe consider Germany?

This post has been edited by iSean: Sep 19 2023, 09:42 PM

Germany offers (offered?) free education as long as you demonstrate competency in the language... it's really not a bad option to consider.

Not sure about USA... scared I get shot dead or beat up.
Germany does seem good.... however problem is language, they all require german, no german no entry
problem is both NUS NTU they require all subject taken in same sitting
possible to land a place in uk UCL or King college? i have a friend that got into king college with A*A*AB, but i think highly depends on whether personal statement good or not

This post has been edited by Police4896: Sep 19 2023, 11:05 PM

To be honest, your results are very good and there’s really no harm in applying. Good luck!

A word of warning about Ivy League and Oxbridge universities. My son received similar results and applied to all the Ivy League and Oxbridge universities to read Economics. Despite having a good academic and co-curricula record, being a prefect and so on, he was rejected from everyone of them. I was surprised as with his results, he would have easily entered those universities during my time.

He did some research and found out that in the last two decades or so, with the increase of China students in tertiary institutes overseas, they had pushed the bar up very high. All universities have a foreign student quota (officially or unofficially) and foreign students compete with each other for those limited places. What would have been an easy shoo-in for my son in past decades was now not good enough due to the China students pushing the bar up very high for other foreign students. My son finally ended up reading Economics at Warwick University, a Russel Group university.

I would suggest that you can try for the Ivy League and Oxbridge universities, but hedge your chances by applying to Russel Group universities at the same time. My son received an unconditional offer from Warwick University whilst he was applying to the other universities. With your results, I believe you may receive an unconditional offer too.

And if you are lucky to get into an Ivy League university, majority of them are based in Boston, which is a lovely historic city and one of the safest in USA. Even other Ivy League universities which are outside Boston, tend to be in safe and lovely cities. So don't worry too much about that. My daughter graduated from a university in New York, and despite its reputation, she had an uneventful and interesting student life there.

This post has been edited by xenotzu: Sep 20 2023, 12:01 PM

Same dilemma as me but I got worse results than you haha.

Advice from me is just apply. Be ready to face rejection.

I got lucky TARUC offered Physics course that time. Edit. Physics course is still offered. MicroE is the one disbanded.

Other physics course is UM is think.

Another way is A levels then bachelors.

Have fun and all the best ma dude

This post has been edited by AthrunIJ: Oct 12 2023, 11:02 PM

NUS/NTU pretty much impossible for any course without 4A*

Oxbridge + Imperial possible if you go for easier (less competition) courses

Warwick, Manchester, KCL, UCL, Bristol etc very high chance of offer with your results.

@xenotzu, What was your daughter's major in the university ?

If you stay in a big city with historical gangs and violence then sure, you can be afraid. But tbh cities in KL feel as scary for me, and some friends who studied abroad will comment that certain cities in the UK are just as nasty. My small uni in US was in a small suburb 45mins away from a big city with history of gangs - I felt safer at uni than my entire A Levels college experience in KL lol. Walking or biking around at night was fine.

Tldr; it depends where you go in US - the entire size of peninsular Malaysia is barely the size of one STATE in US. Read the news where violence is, don't go to those places.

Also

US doesn't have hard requirements of A's or subjects, it depends on your overall essays and ciriccular and experiences. As a bonus, some Uni's may count your A Levels as degree credits and you might be able to shorten your degree by 1-2 years depending.

Lastly, don't put so much weight on ranking - Uni's often rank high because of research etc. A lesser known or smaller college can also give you hands-on experience (lab tech), best personalized experience, focused attention of a professor that is not primarily focused on research. And really, I might say that US is the one of best places to study pure physics at a less expensive cost imo (can be cheaper than UK, lots of scholarships too). I enjoyed my exposure to all the research opportunities there.

Once finishing your physics degree, you can even "extend" your International student Visa doing Optional Practical Training (OPT), interning at a national lab or whatever tech company you try for and get in.

This post has been edited by E-Tan: Oct 12 2023, 11:02 PM

I just really want to chime in and say I truly agree with this statement. University ranking really shouldn't matter that much. In my opinion as long as it is decently ranked, number 100th or 150th really don't make much a difference. 100th and 600th then yes give yourself some time to ponder over why the gap, but if the difference is marginal I would say focus on other criteria like campus location, life on campus etc. Some universities have high rankings because they publish many papers that go on being citated or have high international students/local ratio, but this does not mean the lecturers there possess the skills to impart the knowledge. These are separate matters.