Universiti Malaya (UM) is Malaysia's first and leading research university, established on 8 October 1949 through the merging of King Edward VII College of Medicine (1905) and Raffles College (1928). Originally known as the King Edward VII College of Medicine, UM was created to solve a shortage of medical assistants in Singapore and Penang during the late 1890s. In 1949, the University was merged with the Raffles College to become the University of Malaya, derived from the country's name at that time. In 1960, the University was divided into two national universities, one in Singapore (now an autonomous separate university known as the National University of Singapore), and the other in Kuala Lumpur (established as its own institution in 1962).

Situated on an 812-acre campus in the southwest of Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia, Universiti Malaya is a comprehensive university with multidisciplinary learning that encompasses medicine, science, technology, the social sciences and the humanities. Currently, it comprises 2 academies, 14 faculties, 2 institutes, 5 centres, over 50 research centres, and 4 research clusters. The University's strength lies in the creativity, talent and dynamism of its people. Currently, it has a student enrolment of about 24,000, with 3,000 international students from 85 countries, and a total of 2,168 local and international academic staff.

UM has played a pivotal role in the human capital development of the country and remains at the forefront of scientific and medical discoveries, as is evidenced by the numerous awards, both locally and internationally. With more than 700 partner institutions from around the world, this entails a strong international network and collaborative partnership for research as well as student and staff mobility.

Universiti Malaya (UM) has achieved a significant milestone by securing the 60th position in the QS World University Rankings 2025, marking a 5-place improvement from the previous year and a notable 10-place climb since the 2023 rankings.

In the QS Asia University Rankings 2025, UM has maintained its leading position, securing 12th place out of 984 universities in Asia, 3rd in Southeast Asia, and 1st in Malaysia.

These achievements underscore UM's dedication to academic excellence, impactful research, and a vibrant and diverse learning environment.UM committed to continue providing world-class education and quality research in line with our pursuit to be a global university impacting the world while upholding the core values of passion, oneness, integrity, sincerity and empathy.