2. Write a brief explanation essay on how to get a driving license in Malaysia.

You may ask if its expensive to take a driving license in Malaysia. My reply is, compared to Swedish standards, hell no! In Sweden I guess at present day most people would spend around 20-30 000 SEK (2 800-4 300 USD) on their license if they go to a Swedish driving academy. I signed up for a all inclusive 28 h package with a driving license guarantee and no extra hidden charges at RM 1 400 (450 USD). Id say I got a bargain here, but this is a major city, and if Id taken my driving license out on the countryside I guess I would have gotten it considerably cheaper. According to the JPJ, the age eligibility of driving test are as follow; motorcycle (B, B1 and B2) at the age of 16, car (D) OK, so first out, you have to be at least 17 years old, then there is a highway code test you need to pass. They will seat you in front of a computer and give you a test to make sure you are not colour blind and an eye sight at least better than a mole. This is mandatory and you have to score 100% in order to proceed. Dont worry though, its a breeze and I finished it in less than a minute. The first stage of acquiring driving license in Malaysia, a learner will go through a highway code test. This test is to ensure that future driver is not colour blind and an eye sight at least better than a mole. A 100% pass is required in order to proceed to next stage. After this you have to attend a 6 hours theory course where the teacher basically goes through the drivers curriculum and teach you how to pass the theory exam. Once you have done this you have to take the theory exam within a year after taking your theory class. Depending on where a person is taking up driving lesson, charges may vary from one district to another district. A learner will then have to attend a six hours theory course. This course will enlighten a learner of the drivers curriculum and how to pass the theory exam. The theory exam you have to take at a official JPJ center (Malaysian ministry of road and traffic). There are 50 questions with multiple choice answers and I think you have to score 45 of them right to pass. I took the test the day after I finished my theory class and scored 49, easy! You dont have to do too much studying. The most tedious thing to learn is the Sistem Kejara, which is a demerit point system for when you are committing traffic offenses. Most other things are just common sense. The theory exam will be conducted at every official JPJ center throughout Malaysia. The test consists of 50 questions with multiple choice answers and candidate is required to get at least 45 in order to pass.

Once you pass the theory exam you have to go back to school and sit in for another class of 3 hours theory, but this time following 3 hours practice. Finally some action! These 3 hours are an introduction to the car, maintenance, yadi yada, until you can start practicing on the 3 events which includes, stopping and starting on a slope, parallel parking and three point enter and exit. This is to practice for the first part of the practical test, where these three events will be the first to pass before a JPJ officer will take you out to rate your performance in live traffic. After passing the test(passing score of 42/50), you're eligible for the next process which is the practical lesson, in this 'practical lesson' or known locally as 'AMALI' takes another RM250 and another day listening to lecture for another fake 3 hours, then you'd wait at the driving school for the school instructor to explain the analogy of the car or motorcycle for you, THAT YOU ALREADY KNOW! So, basically, that just ate up your cash. You'll get a 'L' license after that. After passing the test, you are eligible to undergo the practical lesson. In this course candidate will be taking another three hours theory course followed by three hours of introduction of analogy of a car (or motorcycle), maintenance, stopping and starting on a slope, parallel parking and three point enter and exit. Upon completing this course, candidate will given L

All right, so obviously there will be an instructor sitting in with you while you practice on the test driving course. I was assigned to mr. Fathrul who is an extremely friendly, very patient and surprisingly sound, ex-street racer driving instructor. Ive done a fair share of driving in Sweden before I went to the driving academy, so pretty quickly, I got to practice on my own in the (in)famous Malaysian made car, Perodua Kancil. The Kancil is named after the mouse deer (chevrotain) native to Malaysia according to Wikipedia. Locals swear, and I second, that its a car equipped with a scooter engine on a chassis made from soft drink cans. Its as small, if not smaller than a Mini Cooper, but I think I would feel safer in the British mini car. Anyway, once you pass your practical test, which you will do trust me, then you are eligible for the learner license. Yep, you get a fancy learner driving license which basically entitles you to nothing, except that you are allowed to test drive on the roads with a certified driving instructor sitting next to you, in a car designed for driver learning. The Kancils that I drove basically just had an extra braking pedal at the passenger seat and an extra rear view mirror where the vanity mirror usually goes. Anyway, this L license is valid for three months if Im not mistaken, so once you get it, its time to sign up for those lessons with an instructor. Candidate need to pass the practical test that will entitle a learner to test drive on the roads with certified driving instructor. The validity of L license is of three months. My package included 10 hours of driving, which my instructor assured me would be more than enough, even if I was a novice at driving (which thankfully Im not). Only 8 hours are actually used for practicing, then its time for the pre-test. A pre-test is basically your instructor

pretending to be a JPJ officer sitting next to you and rating your driving skills. For me it was basically the same as if I had a normal driving lesson. Fathrul was actually more interested in learning about me and Sweden and of course talking about food than actually teaching me the ropes in driving. Now its not fair to judge him, he already thought I knew more than enough about driving and said I would pass with flying colours. But once in a while I had to remind him that I needed to learn. Basically the training is about learning to handle the car, once you master this, the instructor teaches you how to pass the practical test. Needless to say, this leaves out a lot of actual learning how to drive as a responsible defensive driver. However in Malaysia you are supposed to learn that once you actually get your driving license. So once I was ready and had finished all my 10 hour driving lessons, it was time for the D day. I went to the test driving range far too early in the morning and lined up with about 100 other nervous students waiting for the practical test to commence. Luckily I was the third student to go, but I pity the others that probably had to sit and wait for hours before they could start their tests. I got into a Kancil alone and did the three test driving events that I practiced earlier, stopping and starting on a slope, parallel parking and 3 point enter and exit. Easy! The JPJ officers on the course rated the performance and also timed the students how long it took them to complete each task. Yes, each task has a time limit of a few minutes each. The complete test driving range took me no longer than 10-15 minutes to complete. Once done, it was time to wait some more After a while a JPJ officer came to pick me up and we sat in the Kancil to go for the the second part of the practical test, driving on live roads. During live test driving events, candidate will need to stopping and starting on a slope, perform parallel parking and three point enter and exit. A JPJ officers on the course will rate the performance and timed how long it took for a candidate to complete each task. Each task has a time limit of ???????. The second stage of the test, candidate will do practical driving test on live roads. This part of the test was divided into 3 routes. Each route was of a different length and with different difficulty. The JPJ officer will choose one or in exceptional cases two of these routes for the student to drive. Now I took my practical test during the Muslim fasting month, so the JPJ officer chose the shortest and easiest route. This way they could go back to resting quicker while waiting for breaking fast. If you have the opportunity and dont feel too confident in your driving skills, I suggest you target the fasting month for taking your practical test. Anyway, for me the test was easily passed and I got 19/20 points. The last point was lost because the JPJ officer thought I didnt brake hard enough. In Sweden we are taught to drive smoothly so naturally I brake smoothly for the comfort of my passenger. Nonetheless, this concluded my driving course and in two weeks time I could pick up my new driving license at the driving school together with my P signage. In Malaysia once you pass your driving exam you are given a probationary driving license, P license. Once you have had this license for two years without incidents it will be converted to a CDL or competent drivers license. You also have to clearly display on any car you drive during this time that you are a fresh driver on the roads. So on the front and rear wind screens you have

to stick a huge white P on a bright red background. Should you forget to display the Ps or borrow your friends car without the stickers and get caught in a road block there goes your license. Once a candidate pass his driving exam, he will be given a probationary driving license (P). A probationary license will last about two years. Probationary driver need to stick a white P both on the front and rear wind screens. This servers as precaution that you are a fresh driver on the roads. Failing to do so might cause the P as well as the drivers license to be revoked. After which (without incidents) it will be converted to CDL or competent drivers license.

There is another way to get your driving license in Malaysia which is called Hassle free. Basically you pay some under the table money to make sure that your exams goes without any hick up. Honestly, I dont see why this would be needed unless you are extremely unsure on how to drive, or if you just dont want to spend the time to do it the proper way. I hear that you pay around RM50-100 (USD 15-30) to get your L license and about the same amount to get your P license. I think you pay the driving instructor, but Im not too sure. I heard some that got their license from car dealers who organized the whole thing. Anyway, I dont see why you would have to do that, considering that a proper license is so cheap compare to the prices is the west. I also heard that hassle free license may get you in trouble later on, when you need to renew your license, although I have no confirmation on this. Whatever way you choose to get your own driving license in Malaysia I wish you best of luck although you will most likely not need it.

REFERENCE 1. http://www.jpj.my/Age_Eligibility_Driving_Test.htm 2. http://www.jpj.my/index.htm