TVET after SPM: skills institutes, SKM levels and allowances

TVET means Technical and Vocational Education and Training. It focuses on practical and technical skills that prepare you for work or for running your own business.^[1] You learn by doing, often in workshops, and many courses include industrial training with an employer.

Who runs TVET

TVET is not one institution. MyGOV counted 685 public TVET institutions under 12 ministries in March 2026, offering courses from certificate to degree level.^[2] The TVET Malaysia portal lists who runs what (checked October 2026), for example:^[3]

• Ministry of Human Resources (KESUMA): 33 TVET institutions, including the Institut Latihan Perindustrian (ILP). ADTEC campuses also run courses through the same system.^[4]
• Ministry of Rural and Regional Development (KKDW): 280 institutions, including MARA's skills institutes (IKM), as of April 2023.
• Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS): 22 institutions, including the Institut Kemahiran Belia Negara (IKBN).
• Ministry of Higher Education (KPT): polytechnics and community colleges.
• Ministry of Education (KPM): 86 Kolej Vokasional, plus technical schools.

A note on Kolej Vokasional: entry starts at Form 4, through a test called PKSK.^[5] So if you have already sat SPM, KV is usually not your way in. Look at polytechnics, community colleges and skills institutes instead.

The qualifications

• SKM (Sijil Kemahiran Malaysia) at levels 1, 2 and 3, DKM (Diploma Kemahiran Malaysia) at level 4, and DLKM (Diploma Lanjutan Kemahiran Malaysia) at level 5, issued by the Department of Skills Development (JPK).^[6]
• TVET certificates are recognised through the National Occupational Skills Standards (NOSS), MQA's TVET accreditation code (COPTPA), and bodies such as CIDB and the Energy Commission.^[1]

Progression, honestly: you cannot use SKM on its own to apply for a degree through UPUOnline. You first need a diploma, for example at a community college or polytechnic. DKM and DLKM holders can apply through UPU.^[7]

How to apply

Most full-time public TVET courses use one system, UP_TVET, at mohon.tvet.gov.my.^[8]

• TVET Perdana is full-time skills training for SPM leavers, leading to SKM. It takes in students twice a year, in January and July.^[9] MARA's TVET institutes (IKM, KKTM, MJII) use the same channel.^[9]
• You choose between one and five courses, and applying is free.^[10]
• TVET Flexi suits people who are working or cannot study full time, with full and micro-credential courses.^[11]

Open now: the Siri Perdana 1/2027 intake takes applications from 1 October to 16 November 2026. Interviews (where needed) run 9 to 16 November, offers 17 to 27 November, acceptance 30 November to 6 December 2026, and appeals 7 December 2026 to 26 January 2027.^[12]

Money: fees and allowances

Allowances are set by each institution, and each course page in the UP_TVET catalogue shows its fees and allowances.^[10] Two real examples from the catalogue:

• IKBN Wakaf Tapai, Terengganu: a 24-month SKM Level 3 course, fully sponsored by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, with free hostel and three meals a day. The allowance is RM100 a month in semesters 1-2, RM200 in semesters 3-4 and RM300 during industrial training. Age 17 to 30.^[13]
• ADTEC JTM Kampus Selandar, Melaka: a 15-month SKM Level 3 computer course (a TVET Tahfiz course with extra entry conditions) with free tuition, free shared hostel, four meals a day and an RM100 allowance (RM300 for OKU students).^[4]

These allowances are small. They help, but they do not replace family support. Check each course page, because conditions differ.

Other help: the Budget 2027 speech set aside RM8 billion for TVET across ministries, and RM500 million through PTPK to fund trainees at PTPK-registered skills institutes.^[14] JPA's Dermasiswa B40 grant also covers TVET diplomas.^[15]

When TVET makes sense

• You like hands-on work and want to be job-ready sooner.
• You want low or no fees, with some living support.
• You are happy to keep studying later: SKM to DKM, or a diploma, can lead on to a degree.

What to do next

1. Search courses at tvet.gov.my by state and field, and open two course pages to compare fees, hostel and allowance.
2. If you want a January 2027 start, apply on mohon.tvet.gov.my before 16 November 2026.
3. Ask the institute what you will earn after training and which employers take its students, and write down where the answer came from.