What Is MUET?

MUET stands for Malaysian University English Test. It is an English proficiency test usually taken by pre-university students who intend to pursue a degree programme at a local university. If you’re currently an STPM, Matriks or Asasi student, odds are you’ve heard of this test!

Like most English proficiency tests, MUET evaluates the four language skills that are split into four different papers. 

• Paper 1: Listening

• Paper 2: Speaking

• Paper 3: Reading 

• Paper 4: Writing

Each paper carries an equal weightage of 25%. The highest score you can get is a MUET Band 6 which represents the average scores of all four components. In this article, we’re focusing on Paper 4 of the MUET which assesses your writing skills. Read on as we share our favourite MUET writing tips to help you prepare for the test!

MUET Writing Tips

MUET Writing Tip 1: Know The Format

The first thing to do is to familiarise yourself with the MUET writing format. You are required to write two essays and the total time allocated for this paper is 75 minutes.

Task 1 

In Task 1, you are required to write a reply of at least 100 words to the letter or email given in the appropriate style. You will also need to address or use all of the notes given in the question. You should spend around 25 minutes on this task since it’s quite a short essay.

Depending on the task, the language you use can be formal or informal. For example, if you’re asked to write an email to a friend, the language can be more informal while a letter to your school would require a more formal tone. 

Task 2

For Task 2, you are required to write an essay of at least 250 words long. You are advised to spend around 50 minutes on this task. Similar to an SPM essay, your essay should include an introduction, three body paragraphs and a conclusion.

The essay question is usually in the form of a statement that sets out an idea or a problem and you will be required to respond to it with your own thoughts and opinions. For example, you might be asked to discuss a topic, provide arguments or suggest solutions to a problem. In this essay, you must expand on your points with elaborations, examples and supporting information. Additionally, click here for our article on persuasive essays that you may find useful for this task. 

MUET Writing Tip 2: Understand Your Goal 

Next, you should know what you are being assessed on and what MUET band you need to achieve. For the writing paper, you will be assessed on how well you fulfilled the tasks, the organisation and structure of your essays as well as the vocabulary that you’re using. 

Different universities and courses have different MUET requirements so make sure you check what are the minimum requirements for the degrees that you’re interested in. As your total score across the four components will determine your MUET band, it’s important to ensure that you perform consistently on all four papers to achieve a higher band. 

Once you know the score or band that you’re aiming for, you can then work towards achieving that by following our other MUET writing tips below. 

MUET Writing Tip 3: Practice Sample Questions 

If you notice, the MUET essay questions are pretty similar to the ones in the SPM paper so that is a plus for you already! While it can be nerve-wracking to sit for an English proficiency test, remember that you already have the basics covered. 

However, practice makes perfect! The best way for you to prepare for your MUET and achieve the scores you need is to practice answering sample questions. You can find a sample of the MUET paper on the Malaysian Examinations Council official portal which you can find here. 

On the same portal, you would also find a very detailed and comprehensive booklet with all the information that you might need to sit for the MUET. Make sure you don’t skip this MUET writing tip! You can also find information such as the dates for MUET sessions, the cost for the test and how to register for it.

MUET Writing Tip 4: Identify Strengths And Areas For Improvement

When you’re practising writing your MUET essay, try to think about what went well and what you need to improve on. You can ask yourself the questions below as prompts to help you identify your strengths and areas for improvement.

• Which essay do I find easier to write? Why?

• Do I find it helpful to outline my ideas before I write?

• Are my essays clear and well-organised?

• Do I find it easy or difficult to write the introduction or conclusion?

• Do I provide enough elaboration and examples in my body paragraphs?

• Do I use a mix of simple and complex sentences in my essay? 

• Do I often make grammar or spelling mistakes?

Reflecting on the prompts above should hopefully give you a better idea of what you should work on to achieve the scores you want for your MUET. 

MUET Writing Tip 5: Time Yourself

While some of you might be tempted to go above the suggested word count, we recommend that you don’t stray too far away from it. Although there are no stated penalties for writing more, you only have a limited amount of time during the test so use it wisely. Writing too much may cause you to run out of time or make unnecessary mistakes in your essay. 

Hence, to write a good MUET essay, you should focus on quality over quantity. Just make sure that you address all the task requirements within your essay. 

MUET Writing Tip 6: Always Proofread

Lastly, always remember to proofread or check your essays after you’ve written them. This would allow you to correct any mistakes you might have done, particularly spelling and grammar mistakes. Furthermore, if you find anything in your essay that is unclear, you can try to rephrase it. If there are points that are missing elaborations or examples, you can add more information.