I have been in research most of my life. Depending on your field, you should look up for a thesis supervisor that falls within your research interest.

I'll give you an example. I was a microbiology graduate. After which, I embarked on my research dealing with antimicrobial, which mainly focused on searching for new natural antimicrobial compounds. I have pretty much learned everything on bacteria, which later led me to pursue my PhD on studying virus.

Basically I didn't deviate much from my undergrad. Just that I moved deeper into two main microorganisms, which are more related to human health. Of course there are others too but I decided to pick up these two as my core.

So it's basically up to you to decide what you want to do.

No way my parents could have funded me .. I'm from a B40 family. I did everything under scholarships, we get paid in the form of stipend with tuition fees fully covered. Not much but it covers most of my living cost with a little of saving. Doing a postgrad in Malaysia may not be the wisest choice. The stipend is so low considering the daily living cost. You get paid about 1.5k (master) to 2.5k (PhD) monthly? But it is a good starting point to build your resume if you're in one of the top RUs.

Comparing it to sg where they actually pay you 3k per month as a student and an increment of 500 2 years down the road.

Never self-fund for postgraduate. Not worth doing it. You may not even graduate and dropout in between. Doing a research is not the same as reading, memorizing and vomit everything during exam. Here, you form a hypothesis, prove it and conclude. And, most supervisors would only give minimal guidance, most of the time you're on your own.

Not to mention, research is about using what you have learned during your undergrad days and apply them in your research work to fill the gaps. In short, learn theory (undergrad) >> fill the gaps (postgrad) >> breakthrough (Nobel price winners)

This post has been edited by malz89: Oct 27 2025, 11:34 AM

Master by coursework is pretty much frowned upon. It is not a good stepping stone to PhD for most schools. Doing master by research would be a better option for those wanting to pursue a postgrad. At least, they would experience what research like before moving to do a PhD, especially if you're aiming to secure a scholarship/stipend.