he Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM, English: Malaysian Higher School Ce rtificate) is a pre-university examination taken by students in Malaysia.

It was formerly known as the Higher School Certificate (HSC). The HSC was the precurso r to the GCE A levels in the UK, and is still the name of the pre-university exa mination in some states in Australia. The STPM is set and run by the Malaysian Examinations Council (Majlis Peperiksaa n Malaysia) since 1982, which also runs the Malaysian University English Test (M UET) since 1999, unlike Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM, English: Malaysian Certif icate of Education; taken at the end of Form 5), Penilaian Menengah Rendah (PMR, English: Lower Secondary Assessment Test; taken at the end of Form 3) and Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR, English: Primary School Assessment Test; taken at the end of Standard/Year 6), which are all set and examined by the Malaysian Examinations Syndicate (Lembaga Peperiksaan Malaysia), both of whom, however, ar e under the Ministry of Education. STPM is one of the two major pre-university systems for admission to Malaysian p ublic universities. The other is a one-year matriculation programme conducted by the Ministry of Education. STPM is not the only qualification accepted besides the matriculation programme and Sijil Tinggi Agama Malaysia (STAM, English: Mala ysian Higher Religious Certificate; taken by religious schools' students). Candi dates technically may apply for admission to degree-level courses with a variety of pre-university examinations considered equivalent with STPM, including A-Lev el. All those applying for universities, however, must have taken the MUET. STPM is internationally recognised by many universities, especially those within the Commonwealth of Nations as well as the United States and the Republic of Ir eland. Most universities consider STPM results equivalent to GCE A-Level results .