Learn Hardcore Malay: Saya rasa kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik. - I feel that life on campus is very interesting.

Rasa is flexible; it can mean to feel (emotionally or physically) and also to think in the sense of I feel that / I have the impression that.

In this sentence, Saya rasa kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik is closest to I think campus life is very interesting or I feel that campus life is very interesting.
If you want a more purely intellectual think, you can use fikir:
- Saya fikir kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik.

Nuance:

Saya rasa ... = more subjective, personal impression; very common in speech.
Saya fikir ... = more logical, reasoned opinion; sounds a bit more formal or thoughtful.

Why do we use kehidupan instead of hidup?

Kehidupan is a noun meaning life (as a thing or concept).
Hidup is more basic and can be a verb (to live) or an adjective (alive).

Prefix ke- and suffix -an often turn a root into an abstract noun:
- hidup → kehidupan (life, the state or way of living)

In this sentence:

kehidupan di kampus = campus life (life as experienced on campus).

If you said hidup di kampus, it would more likely mean to live on campus / living on campus (the act of living there), not the broader idea of campus life as a concept.

Why is there no word for is in this sentence?

Malay normally does not use a separate word for is / am / are when linking a noun to an adjective.

Pattern:

[Noun / noun phrase] + [adjective]
- kehidupan di kampus (campus life) + sangat menarik (very interesting)

So kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik literally works as campus life very interesting, and that already means campus life is very interesting.

Words like adalah and ialah exist, but:

They are mostly used between two nouns or for more formal, written style.
With adjectives like menarik, they are usually omitted in normal sentences.

You would not normally say:

✗ kehidupan di kampus adalah sangat menarik
except in certain formal or emphatic contexts, and even then it can sound a bit heavy.

Can I leave out Saya and just say Rasa kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik?

You sometimes hear or see Rasa kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik, but:

With Saya:
- Saya rasa ... clearly means I think / I feel that ...
Without Saya:
- Rasa ... can sound more like a general or impersonal feeling (it feels like...), or like informal shorthand in speech or casual writing.

For learners and in neutral or formal contexts, it is better to keep Saya:

Saya rasa kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik.

You can also say:

Pada saya, kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik.
(In my view, campus life is very interesting.)

What does di do in kehidupan di kampus? Why di and not something else?

Di is the basic preposition for at / in / on (location).

kampus = campus
di kampus = at / on campus

So kehidupan di kampus literally means life at campus → life on campus / campus life.

Comparison:

di = at, in, on (general location)
dalam = in(side) (more about being inside something physical or abstract)

You would not normally say kehidupan dalam kampus for campus life; di kampus is the natural collocation.

Can I change the word order, like putting kehidupan di kampus at the beginning?

Yes. These are both natural, with slightly different emphasis:

Saya rasa kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik.
- Focus on what you think; you start from I think.
Kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik, saya rasa.
- Focus on campus life first, then add in my opinion at the end.

Both are correct.
What you cannot do is break up kehidupan and di kampus in an odd way, for example:

✗ Saya rasa di kampus kehidupan sangat menarik. → awkward / ungrammatical.

How strong is sangat? Is it the same as very? Are there alternatives?

Sangat is the standard word for very.

sangat menarik = very interesting

Other common options:

amat menarik – also very interesting, often sounds a bit more formal or emphatic in writing.
menarik sekali – literally interesting once, but idiomatically very interesting.
terlalu menarik – literally too interesting; can mean too (excessive), not just very.

For everyday use, sangat menarik is neutral and-safe in both speech and writing.

What exactly does kampus refer to? Is it only university, or also school?

Kampus is a loanword from English campus and usually refers to:

A university or college campus,
Or the physical grounds of a higher-education institution.

For school life at a primary or secondary school, people are more likely to say:

di sekolah = at school
and talk about kehidupan di sekolah (school life).

So:

kehidupan di kampus → campus life (generally university / college)
kehidupan di sekolah → school life.

How do we know if this sentence is present, past, or future? Malay has no tense endings here.

Malay verbs and adjectives generally do not change form for tense.
Time is understood from context or from time words.

Saya rasa kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik could be understood as:

I think campus life is very interesting (present),
I thought campus life was very interesting (past),
I think campus life will be very interesting (future),

depending on surrounding context.

If you need to be clear, you add time expressions:

Dulu, saya rasa kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik.
(In the past, I thought campus life was very interesting.)
Nanti, saya rasa kehidupan di kampus akan sangat menarik.
(Later, I think campus life will be very interesting.)

Is this sentence formal or informal? Where can I use it?

The sentence is neutral and quite versatile.

Fine in spoken Malay (to friends, classmates, teachers).
Fine in written Malay, including simple essays or reflections.

For a more formal or academic tone, you might slightly adjust it:

Pada pendapat saya, kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik.
(In my opinion, campus life is very interesting.)

But Saya rasa kehidupan di kampus sangat menarik is already polite and widely acceptable.