Paid MRSM is still being studied, says Asyraf Wajdi
KUALA LUMPUR - The establishment of a paid Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara) college for elite Bumiputera students has yet to be decided and is being studied.
Its newly appointed chairman Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki however, assured that the main goal of establishing the paid MRSM would not deter the original objective of establishing the MRSM if the proposal was realised.
He said the proposal was initiated after considering people's concerns that MRSM's charges were too high.
"We received 90,000 applications this year alone, but we only have 7,100 spots." "We can't focus only on B40, M40, and T20 only. Nevertheless, we will never forgo Mara's main goal.
"We will make sure that at least 60 percent of the B40 community will get a place in MRSM and the rest in M40 and T20," he said.
He told reporters at the Mara Iftar programme with the media at the Premiere Hotel near here.
Asyraf also said that Mara is still assessing the feasibility of paid MRSM as well as how to implement it.
"The first thing we must consider is that we cannot escape Mara's orientation, education, curriculum, and existing Mara approach.
"It includes not all T20s who will enter this paid MRSM. We may accept approximately 30 per cent of sponsored students. This sponsorship may not only come from Mara.
"It can be from the Mara Education Foundation, which receives funds from various parties—corporate, various parties. We can take advantage of this.
"In this study, there are two important dimensions. We want to build one thing, we want to 'maintain' another thing. We all have to take this into account. "Before we add new MRSM, we must ensure that the existing 55 MRSM are in good condition," he explained.
