KUALA LUMPUR: Graduates earning between RM2,501 and RM3,000 a month will only need to repay their National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) loans at a minimum rate of RM50 a month under the flexible repayment scheme announced in Budget 2027.
Deputy Higher Education Minister Adam Adli Abdul Halim said the loan repayment flexibility initiative was expected to benefit more than 400,000 people, helping to ease the financial burden on graduates who had just entered the workforce.
READ MORE: Budget 2027: PTPTN repayment relief welcomed, but education outcomes must improve
He said graduates earning less than RM2,500 a month would not need to begin repaying their loans until they reached the stipulated income threshold.
“We can address this concern in the most effective way possible for now.
“This is something that has been discussed and debated for years, and now, insya-Allah, we can implement it through Budget 2027,” he said in a recent interview with a local radio station.
Commenting on the cost of living among university students, Adam Adli said the Dapur Siswa MADANI initiative, which provides centralised cooking facilities on campuses, would be expanded to polytechnics and teacher education institutes (IPGs) next year.
He said an allocation of RM20 million had been provided to supply food items and necessities, including rice, cooking oil, eggs and sardines, to the kitchens.
“Students can use the supplies to cook for themselves or in groups, with planning carried out together with student associations or kitchen managers to help control food expenses,” he said.
On transportation, he said the My50 pass would continue, alongside the introduction of MyKomuter50 for users of Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) commuter services. Students could also use the pass for their daily journeys.
Meanwhile, he said the FlySiswa assistance would be increased from RM400 to RM500 annually for each eligible student to purchase flight tickets between Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah and Sarawak for study-related travel.
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ADAM ADLI-PTPTN 3 (LAST) KUALA LUMPUR
Adam Adli said Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) would continue to be strengthened for young people interested in technical skills, with the employability rate of its graduates standing at between 95 and 97 per cent annually.
He said investments in high-technology industries had also created job opportunities and increased demand for workers equipped with new skills.
As an example, he recounted meeting a polytechnic diploma graduate in his 20s who earned between RM6,000 and RM7,000 a month after working at a data centre in Johor for about a year following graduation.
“TVET is a pathway that we are strengthening to ensure that more young people, including school leavers who are not interested in academics but prefer technical disciplines, have an option that suits them. TVET is the answer.
“Sometimes, all we need is the skill,” he said.