International Postgraduate Student’s Challenges in Academic Writing in Malaysian Public Universities

The purpose of this study is to investigate International postgraduate perceptions of difficulty with academic writing in Malaysian public universities. This research employed survey and semi-structured interview to collect data. A survey was used to collect demographic data and students’ perceptions of difficulties in general writing and language-related skills. The results revealed that students had a positive attitude towards academic writing; however, they were not well-prepared in terms of academic writing skills in their home country. Moreover, students perceived greater difficulty with language related problems than general writing skills.  This study implied that international postgraduate students who graduated from non-English medium instruction universities should be supported in terms of general writing and language related skills through computer-assisted writing instruction to be autonomous writers.