The Missing Students of Myanmar

The number of students taking Myanmar’s matriculation exams has declined sharply, with this year’s figures showing a drop of more than 80 percent from 2019—raising concerns about the continued disruption of higher education in the country.

In March, according to media coverage, 160,000 high school students took the examinations needed to enter a university—fewer than a fifth of the 910,000 who took them in 2019, the last year before COVID-19 and when Myanmar had a civilian government.

In February 2021, roughly 12 months into the pandemic, the military overthrew Myanmar’s democratically elected leaders. Protests swept the country, with thousands of university staff suspended by the ruling junta for supporting the civil disobedience movement, according to reports.

While campuses have attempted to return to normal, many are still struggling to restore staffing and student attendance, Times Higher Education has been told.

Kyaw Moe Tun, president of Parami University, which is among Myanmar’s private institutions, said the figures were “quite concerning.”

“This means that the majority of secondary school children are not in the system, and it is hard for us to monitor the futures of the majority of the matriculation-age young people,” he said.

He described higher education in Myanmar as back only to a “seminormal” state, estimating that while some public universities have reopened, just half of students have returned. Some private, for-profit universities in major cities have resumed in-person classes, but these are in the minority, he said.

Roger Chao, assistant director and head of education, youth and sports at the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) secretariat, noted that the factors behind the drop in numbers taking exams were complex.

“This phenomenon is a mix of different issues: civil disobedience; challenges of continuing schooling due to school safety issue[s]; [a] drop in quality of learning, which demotivates students from taking matriculation exams; and the need to work to support family,” he said.

One Burmese higher education expert, who asked to remain anonymous because of political sensitivity over the issue, said some students had found “alternative study options,” mostly in the form of short- to medium-term courses and diploma programs.

While pro-democracy groups offer online programs, including lecture series or webinars with open live streams on social media platforms, these lack accreditation, she said.

Many learners were eager to restart their studies, but they might be reluctant to attend public institutions, the expert explained.

“There is demand [to] switch to university preparation and bridging courses,” she said. “As in higher education, many high school students and their parents equate attendance at public schools and [universities] with the legitimization of the regime.”