In what has been described by leading newspapers as a landmark policy change, the Sarawak State Government has decided to recognise the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) for state civil service employment, state scholarships and admission to Unimas (Universiti Malaysia Sarawak) and private universities established in that state. UEC is the qualification awarded by the system of secondary schools often described as the Independent Chinese Schools.

According to the recently published Education Blueprint 2015-2025 (Higher Education), Independent Chinese schools form the largest component of the education options existing outside the national system. Approximately 66,700 students are enrolled in the 60 Independent Chinese schools.

Independently appointed Board of Trustees work with the school leadership to manage each of these schools, which are funded through tuition and philanthropic contributions. These schools use Chinese language as the main medium of instruction, and teach a curriculum developed by Dong Jiao Zong benchmarked against systems such as those used in Taiwan and England. The schools prepare students for a standardized examination known as the Unified Examination Certificate (at Year 6 of secondary school), although many schools also prepare their students for the SPM.