Johor official blames S'pore for 900 missing students from national exam

A Malaysian official in the state of Johor has surfaced a possible reason to explain why over 900 students skipped the state's SPM (secondary school) examinations — Singapore.

"The challenge for us is that Singapore does not see the SPM as a requirement for work," said Aznan Tamin, chairman of the Johor Information and Education Committee, the New Straits Times (NST) reported.

Don't need SPM to work in Singapore: Aznan Tamin

The SPMs are conducted at the end of secondary education in Malaysia and are administered centrally.

They are generally required in Malaysia for a graduate to apply for a job.

However, Aznan believes that Malaysians looking for work in Singapore do not need an SPM graduation certificate.

"Schools must engage parents and students to emphasise the importance of the SPM for their future," he said at an educational event in Johor on Feb. 11, 2025.

Back in January, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek noted that 10,000 candidates had yet to confirm their attendance for the SPM exams, Malay Mail reported.

Singapore's stronger currency

NST speculated that many young Malaysians were drawn to the promise of work across the Causeway, due to Singapore's "stronger currency."

As of Feb. 12, the exchange rate of the Singapore dollar to the Malaysian ringgit was S$1 to RM3.3.

It can be easier for Malaysians to obtain jobs in certain sectors in Singapore compared to individuals from other countries.

For example, under the Ministry of Manpower's rules for work permits for the service sector, in order for a migrant worker to be eligible, they must be from the following countries or regions:

• Malaysia
• People's Republic of China
• North Asian sources (South Korea, Taiwan, Macau, Hong Kong HKSAR passport)

For a restricted set of occupations (filed under the NTS Occupation List), firms in Singapore can employ migrant workers from Non Traditional Sources (NTS).

Employers can apply for work permits for workers in roles such as housekeepers, hotel porters and food processors.

They must meet certain criteria, such as keeping within a sub-Dependency Ratio Ceiling (DRC) of 8 per cent for NTS Work Permit holders in the NTS Occupation List, paying their Work Permit holder performing occupations in this list a fixed monthly salary of at least S$2,000, and Work Permit holders must only perform the occupation stated on their Work Permit.

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