Baik dekan mahupun pensyarah itu setuju bahawa sijil penting, tetapi pengalaman di makmal juga sangat berguna.

In this sentence, baik dekan mahupun pensyarah itu means both the dean and the lecturer.

This pattern is a fairly formal Malay structure used to link two items. In many contexts, it works like English both ... and ....

So:

• baik dekan mahupun pensyarah itu = both the dean and the lecturer

It is more formal than everyday spoken Malay.

Often, yes, especially in sentences like this one where two nouns are being linked.

But more broadly, baik ... mahupun ... can also have a sense like whether ... or ... depending on context.

In your sentence, though, the natural interpretation is clearly:

• both the dean and the lecturer

So for this example, both ... and ... is the best way to think about it.

Malay often puts ini or itu at the end of the whole noun phrase, not necessarily after each noun separately.

So:

• dekan mahupun pensyarah itu

can be understood as a coordinated phrase where itu helps mark the whole group as definite.

This is natural Malay word order. You could also see more explicitly repeated forms in some contexts, such as:

• dekan itu mahupun pensyarah itu

but the version in your sentence is smoother and less repetitive.

Malay does not have articles that work exactly like English a/an and the.

Whether something is definite or indefinite is often understood from context. Words like ini and itu can help mark something as more definite or specific.

So in this sentence:

• dekan
• pensyarah
• sijil
• pengalaman

do not need separate words for a or the.

For example:

• pensyarah itu = that lecturer / the lecturer
• sijil can mean a certificate, the certificate, or certificates in general, depending on context

Bahawa introduces a clause, similar to English that in sentences like:

• They agree that certificates are important.

So:

• setuju bahawa sijil penting

means:

• agree that certificates are important

In formal Malay, bahawa is very normal here.

In less formal speech, people may sometimes omit it or use yang instead, but bahawa is the standard written/formal choice.

It can sometimes be omitted in casual Malay, but keeping it makes the sentence clearer and more formal.

Compare:

• setuju bahawa sijil penting — formal, clear, standard
• setuju sijil penting — possible in some contexts, but less polished
• setuju yang sijil penting — common in speech, less formal

So in this sentence, bahawa is a good choice.

Because Malay often does not need a verb equivalent to is/are when the predicate is an adjective.

So:

• sijil penting = certificates are important
• pengalaman ... sangat berguna = experience ... is very useful

This is completely normal Malay.

You do sometimes see adalah in formal writing, but it is not necessary here, and using it before adjectives can even sound unnatural in many ordinary sentences.

Here, di is a preposition meaning in, at, or sometimes on, depending on context.

So:

• di makmal = in the laboratory / in the lab

This di is written separately because it is a preposition.

That is different from passive di-, which is a prefix attached directly to a verb, for example:

• ditulis = written
• dibaca = read

So:

• di makmal = preposition + noun
• ditulis = passive prefix + verb

They are different even though they look similar.

Pengalaman di makmal literally means experience in the laboratory/lab, which is a very natural way to express laboratory experience.

Malay often uses a prepositional phrase like di makmal to show where the experience takes place.

So:

• pengalaman di makmal = experience in the lab / lab experience

If you said pengalaman makmal, it would sound less natural in this context.

Because juga means also, and it is modifying the whole idea that pengalaman di makmal is useful too.

So the structure is:

• pengalaman di makmal = lab experience
• juga = also
• sangat berguna = very useful

Together:

• pengalaman di makmal juga sangat berguna = lab experience is also very useful

This word order is normal.

If you move juga, the sentence may still be understandable, but the emphasis can change slightly.

This is a very useful vocabulary question.

• sijil usually means certificate
• ijazah usually means degree, especially a university degree

So in your sentence, sijil refers to certificates or formal credentials, not specifically a university degree.

Examples:

• sijil kursus = course certificate
• ijazah sarjana muda = bachelor’s degree

A learner should not automatically translate sijil as degree.

Yes.

• tetapi = standard/formal but
• tapi = shorter, more conversational but

In writing or careful speech, tetapi is a very good choice. In everyday conversation, many speakers would naturally say tapi.

So this sentence sounds polished partly because it uses tetapi.

Mahupun is quite formal and is especially common in writing, speeches, essays, reports, and careful formal speech.

In everyday conversation, many speakers might choose simpler structures, such as:

• dekan dan pensyarah itu sama-sama setuju ...
• baik dekan atau pensyarah itu, kedua-duanya setuju ...
  depending on the intended nuance

So yes, mahupun is correct, but it has a more formal or literary feel than very casual spoken Malay.

Malay often does not mark plurals unless it needs to.

A bare noun like sijil can mean:

• a certificate
• the certificate
• certificates in general

The context tells you which meaning is intended.

In this sentence, sijil penting is a general statement, so English naturally translates it as certificates are important or a certificate is important, depending on style.

If Malay really wants to emphasize plurality, it can use reduplication:

• sijil-sijil

But that is not needed here.