This study seeks to explore the washback effect of the Malaysian University English Test (MUET), a high-stakes compulsory university entry test in the context of Malaysia. As simple and linear as it commonlyappears, washback has been found to be far more complex than simply looking at the impact that a test might or might not have on the stakeholders. Therefore, this study aims to fill in this knowledge gap bysystematically re-examining the beliefs on washback by investigating the relationship between the students’ perceptions of the MUET in terms of its importance and difficulty, with their language learning strategies whilst preparing for the test and after sitting the test. Using a mixed methods approach, a student questionnaire and student interview were utilised to elicit data from 30 male and 46 female students. The students were further divided into two groups, specifically those who were preparing for the MUET and those who had already sat the MUET. The findings suggest that preparing for the MUET enc
