EXPLAINED: This Is What Special University Entry Will Look Like For A-Level Students In Malta
With the May MATSEC examination session being postponed all the way to September – only a month before the start of University of Malta’s first semester – the authorities have issued a detailed set of guidelines for students looking to go into University.
In light of this, we have gathered all the information you need to know before kicking off your first year as a University student.
The latest COVID-19 concessions implemented by MATSEC for the incoming A-Level examination session will only allow students who are under mandatory quarantine during the aforementioned session provisional entry into University.
Students under mandatory quarantine applying for the Medicine & Surgery and Dental Surgery courses will be offered the opportunity to sit for their examinations at home – although under supervision.
If they obtain all the General and Special Course Requirements after said session, they will be admitted into their course as regular students.
Students under mandatory quarantine applying for any other undergraduate courses will be allowed provisional entry to their first preference course in October 2020. This will be done on the condition that they sit for their A-Levels and intermediates in the December resit session.
If such students satisfy the General and Special Course Requirements in the December resit, they will be allowed to continue as regular students. However, if they obtain at least 36 points, they will continue the year as probationary students until the end of the academic year. Probationary students will be allowed to continue their course provided that they pass their first year exams. If they obtain less than 36 points, they will be withdrawn from their course.
Having said that, A-Level students applying for any other course who are absent for the September session for any other reason will still be able to sit for the resit session in December – however they will not be allowed provisional entry into University.
Education Minister Owen Bonnici said that this was done so as not to give this year’s MATSEC students an unfair advantage over MATSEC students of other years.
In previous years, students who did not attend the May session could sit for a maximum of three intermediates and one A-Level in the September session – therefore they could not get into the University of Malta by sitting solely for the resit session.
As soon as students are informed by the Health Authorities that they must remain in mandatory quarantine, they are required to inform the MATSEC Support Unity by sending an email to [email protected]. This email should include a copy of the document issued by the Health Authorities.