Malaysia International Scholarship (MIS)

Who can apply

Not more than 40 years old at the time of application for a Master's, or 45 for a PhD
Master's applicants: a CGPA of 3.00 / Second Class Upper (Honours) or higher at bachelor's level; PhD applicants: a CGPA of 3.00 or excellent results at Master's level in a related field
IELTS 6.0, or TOEFL PBT 550, or a previous degree taught in English with an official declaration to that effect
A written research proposal of at least 1,000 words, relevant to the intended field and with a stated preference for Malaysia-related topics, required for Master's by Research and PhD applicants only
Currently enrolled students at an eligible Malaysian institution must have at least two semesters remaining
Two letters of recommendation, a certified passport copy, certified transcripts, and a CV are all required documents; any document not in English needs a certified translation
Scholars cannot take paid employment during the scholarship, or change their study programme, without written approval from the university and Ministry

Narrower coverage than most aggregators claim

Coverage here is deliberately narrow, and worth stating plainly since several aggregators describe MIS as fully funded. It is not: the Ministry’s own 2026 guidelines list exactly two benefits, tuition paid directly to the university and the RM 1,500 monthly allowance. There is no airfare, no insurance, and no settling-in allowance anywhere in the official terms.

An unusually wide eligible-country list, and nine priority fields

The eligible-country list is unusually wide and worth knowing rather than assuming: every ASEAN state, every Commonwealth Parliamentary Association region, and a further list of around 40 named countries spanning North Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia and Latin America. Applicants may apply for any accredited course, but the Ministry names nine priority areas of study, from education, arts and humanities, and business and law through to engineering, ICT, and agriculture and fisheries; Health and Welfare is on that priority list too, but explicitly excludes medicine, nursing and pharmacy.

Which universities are actually eligible

The 24 eligible institutions are named directly rather than left generic: 20 public universities, including Universiti Malaya, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia and Universiti Putra Malaysia among others, plus four private institutions, Universiti Teknologi Petronas, Universiti Tenaga Nasional, Multimedia University and INCEIF University. A course at a Malaysian institution outside this list is not covered, whatever its own reputation.

The paperwork, and what you’re signing up for

The document checklist is specific: a certified passport copy valid for at least six months, certified academic transcripts (with a letter explaining your institution’s grading system if it doesn’t show a CGPA), proof of English proficiency, two letters of recommendation, a CV, and, for research-based Master’s and PhD applicants, a research proposal that carries an explicit preference for Malaysia-related topics. Anything not already in English needs a certified translation, a process worth starting early using the guide to translating and certifying academic documents. Once awarded, scholars cannot take paid work without written approval, cannot change their study programme without written permission from both the university and the Ministry, and lose the scholarship (and the monthly allowance) immediately if suspended by their university, so this is a genuine commitment, not a flexible arrangement.

Applications go straight to the Ministry, and this round is closed

Applications go directly to the Ministry, not through a nominating body, and the current 2026/2027 round has already closed; the site confirms this and adds that shortlisted applicants could only check their interview status in July 2026. No date has been published yet for the next round.