Malaysian Qualifications Framework

The Malaysian Qualifications Framework (Malay: Kerangka Kelayakan Malaysia) or the MQF is a unified system of post secondary qualifications offered on a national basis in Malaysia. It is administered by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA), a statutory body under the purview of the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE).

With the rapid growth of the private education sector in Malaysia, the National Accreditation Board (Malay: Lembaga Akreditasi Negara) or LAN was established in 1996 to oversee the certification of standards and accreditation of academic programs provided by private colleges and universities in Malaysia. In April 2002, a Quality Assurance Division (QAD) was established by the Ministry of Education (MOE) to manage and co-ordinate the quality assurance system in public universities.

Prior to the establishment of these bodies, no specific accreditation system existed and institutions of higher education had only to be duly established or registered under the relevant governing legislations:

In June 2003, a national consultation seminar was held to establish a national qualifications framework that would integrate, rationalise, justify and bring together all qualifications offered on a national basis into a single interconnected system. The MQF was finally adopted in 2007 and both the QAD and LAN were dissolved and their functions taken over by the MQA which was established on 1 November 2007 by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency Act 2007.

The framework divides all qualifications into three sectors, correlating with the type of institution offer the courses:

The Malaysian Skills Certificate (Malay: Sijil Kemahiran Malaysia) is implemented based on the National Occupational Skills Standard (NOSS) developed by the Department of Skills Development (DSD) under the purview of the Ministry of Human Development. It is conferred as a formal recognised certificate to individuals who has shown capabilities that acquired or practised with competencies to do a task or work, which usually in the form of basic vocational skills. The criteria and standards of the SKM are articulated with higher level qualifications to enable holders to progress from the level of semi skills, to skilled production, right up to supervisory, executive and managerial functions.

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