Higher Education Development and Study Abroad Experiences of Faculty in Indonesia

Abstract

This chapter provides an overview of the higher education sector in Indonesia, Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) and Gadjah Mada University (UGM), and a discussion of the impact of faculty study abroad programs. As of 2022, there are 4,481 higher education institutions in Indonesia. While the higher education enrollment rate has now reached 40% and the number of students exceeds nine million, the quality of education continues to be a challenge. The government’s higher education policy calls for collaboration with external stakeholders, promotion of internationalization, and enhancement of equitable access. The government continues to offer a variety of scholarship programs, with Japan as the largest destination, followed by the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. ITB and UGM are considered top universities, both representing Indonesia. ITB is an engineering university with approximately 1300 faculty members and 25,000 students, while UGM is a comprehensive university with approximately 3600 faculty members and 50,000 students. This study has confirmed that study abroad programs have significant impacts, most notably in terms of improved curriculum and faculty-student relationships. It also demonstrates the importance of strengthening the ties between returning students and the host country and conducting research based on the needs of employers, local business and industries, as a means of deepening the impacts of study abroad programs.

7.1 Introduction

The objective of this study is to collect information on the impact of Indonesian study abroad programs based on data and accounts from two major institutions, Institut Teknologi Bandung in Bandung (ITB) in Bandung and Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) in Yogyakarta. The basic information survey is essential for providing an overall understanding of the target universities.

The study was carried out between May and August 2018. The author has undertaken desk research and an analysis of publicly available secondary information, such as reports and articles. The research also comprised in-depth interviews with selected officials at ITB, the Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education (MoRTHE), as well as the Ministry of Development Planning/National Development Planning Agency. Since the report has been prepared based on the above-mentioned method, it is unavoidable that the author’s personal opinions have been included in some sections of this chapter.

Unfortunately, it was not possible to undertake a visit to UGM before the conclusion of the formal agreement of this project. In order to meet the deadline, the author has gathered information on UGM from various alternative sources, mostly those available online.

7.2 National Higher Education

7.2.1 Historical Background

Higher education in Indonesia does not have a long history, beginning at the end of the nineteenth century with the establishment of a medical education program for Indigenous doctors in Jakarta. Before World War II, the number of active students hovered around 200, though almost 1000 students were registered at the time. After independence in 1945, several professional schools (Engineering and Sciences in Bandung, Agriculture in Bogor, and Medicine in Surabaya) were consolidated under Balai Perguruan Tinggi in Jakarta, which became Universitas Indonesia in 1950. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, schools located outside Jakarta were gradually turned into independent universities, including Airlangga University (UNAIR) in Surabaya, Hasanuddin University (UNHAS) in Makassar, ITB in Bandung, and IPB in Bogor.

7.2.2 Current Higher Education Landscape

Institutions

As of April 2022, there are a total of 4481 institutions offering higher education in Indonesia (PDPT 2022). In Table 7.1, institutions are grouped into four categories according to their status: universities, Islamic institutions, and service colleges, along with an Open University.

Table 7.1 Distribution of tertiary institutions in Indonesia

As institutions, universities are under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology (MOECRT) and are open for admission to any high school graduate. Islamic institutions focus on Islamic studies and are the responsibility of the Ministry of Religious Affairs (MoRA). Service colleges aim to produce graduates with special competencies to serve the government’s needs.

Governance

Law 22/1999 decentralizes the responsibility for managing most sectors—including education—to the districts and municipalities. Nevertheless, the responsibility for managing the higher education system is still in the hands of the central government due to its role in promoting national integration.

Under the current administration, MoECRT is responsible for all levels of education, as well as culture. The Directorate General of Higher Education and the Ministry of Research, and Technology were merged into the Directorate General of Higher Education, Research, and Technology (DGHERT), with responsibility of managing higher education, excluding vocational institutions. All non-university research institutions have been merged under the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN).

Following the enactment of Law 12/2012, 21 institutions were converted into legal entities. A legal entity has a governing board as its highest authority, although a representative of the Minister of MoECRT is also an ex-officio member of the board.

Funding

Public funds allocated for education have been steadily increasing over the last decade, particularly after the Consultative Assembly (Majelis Permusyawaratan Rakyat - MPR) amended the Constitution in 2005, mandating that 20% of the budget had to be allocated to the education sector.

The 2018 budget shows the combined budget of DGHE and the Ministry of Research and Technology (MoRT), indicating that the increase shown in Table 7.2 might be misleading. The allocated government budget for higher education institutions (DGHE) has actually decreased since 2015. Due to concerns over public outcry on high tuition and fees charged by public institutions over the last few years, MoRTHE has recently introduced a cap on tuition tariffs, resulting in a significant decrease in self-generated revenue.

Table 7.2 Government budget for higher education 2004–2021 in IDR trillionFootnote

These figures do not take inflation into account.

Enrolment Rate

The Gross Enrolment Rate (GER) has significantly improved from 18.2% in 2004 to 39.17%—or over 9.28 million students in 2021. However, the GER is still considered moderate compared to neighboring ASEAN countries, such as Malaysia (43%) or Thailand (49%) (World Bank, 2021) (Table 7.3).

Table 7.3 Student enrolment in Indonesia tertiary institutions

Although the issue of quantity is always important, ensuring more equitable access to higher education for disadvantaged populations is widely considered a more pressing issue for Indonesia. However, due to rapid technological advancements, the goal of expanding higher education has become much easier to fulfill.

Quality and Relevance

Data recently acquired from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) shows that the overall unemployment among workers is around 6.8 million, or 5.5% of the total workforce. In higher education, the proportion of unemployed graduates is higher among three-year vocational graduates than university graduates.

The increasing percentage of unemployed graduates from the vocational program over the last five years, as illustrated in Table 7.4, is worrisome. Since vocational education requires much higher investment and per-student unit costs, this phenomenon deserves serious attention. The significant spike in 2020 is most likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Table 7.4 Percentage of unemployed workers in Indonesia by educational attainment

In addition to relevance, quality is also a central issue in higher education. Among other factors, quality is reflected in accreditation results, which are assessed by the National Accreditation Agency for Higher Education. Table 7.5 shows that just 34 programs (3.08%) successfully acquired an “excellent” accreditation rating, demonstrating that quality is still problematic.

Table 7.5 Results of program and institutional accreditation at tertiary institutions in Indonesia

In 2010, Indonesia produced the fewest international publications among the major ASEAN countries. In order to rectify the problem, MoRTHE set the goal of increasing the country’s international publications as its highest priority, resulting in a significant improvement. Figure 7.1 shows that the number of publications from Indonesia, as indexed by SCOPUS in 2019, has surpassed Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore for the very first time.

Fig. 7.1

Rank of international publications in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore, as indexed by SCOPUS. Source MoECRT (2022)

7.2.3 Higher Education Policies and Strategies

In 2019, the new MoECRT administration launched new policies and programs designed to promote, encourage, and provide support for universities to strengthen their collaboration with stakeholders, including overseas institutions. The newly launched programs include matching funds for joint industrial research, downstreaming inventions/discoveries, supporting start-ups, competitive funding for selective programs, student credit-earning activities from placements in industry and community, sabbatical leave for faculty members, staff exchange with industry, and international collaboration. Since this study was conducted in 2018, further details on these activities are beyond the scope of this study and not included in this chapter.

Mission Differentiation

In order to improve educational quality in coping with current global challenges, institutions are expected to focus their activities according to their selected mission. It is almost impossible for any institution to rapidly improve quality without focusing on a specific mission. In the foreseeable future, it is predicted that institutions may not have sufficient resources or expertise to focus on fundamental research. Therefore, higher education institutions are encouraged to focus on either the right-hand side or the bottom-left of the rectangle of Fig. 7.2.

Fig. 7.2

Source Stokes (1997), Hatakenaka (2008)

Mission differentiation.

The selection of the focal mission for each institution should be based on an in-depth analysis in self-evaluation. The government offers support for institutions in choosing their appropriate mission by providing a variety of funding mechanisms and technical assistance.

Internationalization

The internationalization of higher education is imperative due to the increasing interactions among nations aiming to address global problems that require multilateral solutions. Internationalization at the level of individual institutions can be grouped into the following three levels of developmental stages (Cheng, 2009):

• Level 1: international recognition

• Level 2: student and faculty exchange as part of an academic program

• Level 3: accessibility to the international community, including faculty members and students

Until 2017, non-trade barriers made it almost impossible for foreign universities to operate directly in Indonesia. The regulations required foreign universities to jointly establish a local foundation with a local university. Moreover, the bureaucratic requirements for foreign professors to teach were onerous, scaring away most applicants.

To accelerate the number of institutions reaching Level 3, MoRTHE announced plans to open the market to foreign universities. At the same time, the government eased the procedure for foreign lecturers to acquire a license and visa. Currently, MoRTHE is reviewing proposals from a few foreign institutions to establish campuses.

Improving Equitable Access

The disparities between different groups and populations have serious social and political implications in archipelago countries, such as Indonesia. Higher education can potentially provide opportunities for social mobility to reduce such gaps. The following four different causes of access limitation can be identified:

• Economic background, whereby high school graduates cannot apply due to lack of funding support;

• Geographical isolation, whereby high school graduates live in isolated areas far from any higher education institution;

• Academic ability, whereby high school graduates do not have sufficient academic ability to undertake education programs in higher education; and

• Limited available spaces in higher education, whereby the higher education sector has limited space to accommodate demand.

Box 7.1: Bidik Misi

Bidik Misi is a DGHERT scholarship program to support high school graduates from disadvantaged backgrounds. Only students with excellent academic performance are eligible to apply. Recruitment is carried out when students commence Grade 12, before they complete their final examinations. Selection is conducted through a rigorous evaluation process, including home visits and interviews with parents.

Students from disadvantaged backgrounds are mostly discouraged from applying since there is no guarantee of available funds until the end of the study period. Therefore, the scholarship is guaranteed for four years until they finish their studies. It includes tuition, living allowance, books, travel from their location to the targeted university, and research funds for final-year students.

This program has come to be considered the most successful Indonesian scholarship program. Nonetheless, some critics of the program argue that, among other issues, it is exclusive to academic performance (rather than academic potential) and that the fixed scholarship amount does not take into account the variety of CPIs across different regions.

As of 2022, DGHERT has provided around 400,000 scholarships through the BidikMisi program (see Box 7.1). Currently, recipients need to have excellent academic performance. But many students from disadvantaged backgrounds do not perform well academically due to their financial circumstances, i.e., the need to assist their families in earning an income. In the future, therefore, DGHERT plans to broaden the program to also include students with academic potential, who have not been accommodated so far for a variety of reasons.

Since 2015, MoECRT has launched an affirmative program called Afirmasi Pendidikan Tinggi (ADik), which provides scholarships for school graduates from Papua and other isolated regions. In 2018, almost 3500 students benefited from this program.

Improving Quality and Relevance

The government is eager to provide assistance and support for private institutions to improve their quality. However, it is not feasible to design an effective program for all of the existing 2990 private institutions. The government is encouraging the merger and amalgamation of small private institutions to establish new larger institutions. Currently, student enrolment in most private institutions is <1000, making their operation very inefficient. DGHERT plans to develop programs to provide technical assistance and subsidies for private institutions to improve the quality.

7.2.4 Academic Staff Development

As many domestic graduate programs were insufficiently mature to offer postgraduate programs until the 1970s, most recipients had to enroll in graduate programs offered by overseas institutions (Table 7.6).

Table 7.6 Distribution of lecturers in Indonesia

Currently, the total number of lecturers is 320,052, with <50,000 (or 16%) holding PhD degrees. Supported by multilateral agencies, a project coordinated by the Ministry of Development Planning (BAPPENAS) plans to significantly increase the number of PhDs. across the entire public sector.

As local graduate programs have developed their own resources and gained experience, quality and capacity have increased significantly. The government has also improved its financial capacity to provide funds for lecturers to pursue advanced degrees abroad. Hence the combination of these two improvements has increased MoRTHE’s capacity to increase the number of PhD holders.

MoRTHE does not yet have a strong or clear strategy for human resource development.² Without such a long-term strategy, achieving a critical mass of academics may be a challenging task, delaying important breakthroughs and meaningful impacts.

7.3 Study Abroad Programs

With increasing prosperity, the number of self-funded students studying abroad has increased significantly over the last decade. Currently, the total number of students studying abroad is likely to have exceeded 250,000.³

7.3.1 Institute for Education Fund Management (LPDP)

The Constitution requires that 20% of the government budget be allocated to the education sector, as noted in Sect. 7.2.2. However, at the end of every fiscal year, a portion of the funds are left unspent. In 2010, the Parliament and the government agreed to accumulate these unspent funds into an endowment for education.

To effectively manage the endowment, a dedicated agency was established in 2011. Called the Lembaga Pengelola Dana Pendidikan (LPDP or Institute for Education Fund Management), the agency is responsible for providing funds for scholarships, research, and the reconstruction of education facilities (only in special cases such as natural disasters). Although LPDP provides scholarships for both domestic and overseas study, this report limits itself to aspects related to overseas study. The government policy is aimed at consolidating all funds allocated for scholarships under LPDP.

7.3.2 MoECRT-Sponsored Scholarships

Since MoECRT tracks all students studying abroad under government-sponsored scholarship programs, more accurate data is available. However, the ministry does not have access to any information on the number of self-funded students or recipients of other sources of scholarships. The database does not include lecturers from Islamic institutions or IAIN/UIN.⁴ The following sections provide an overview of these scholarship programs.

Scholarships for Excellent Lecturers (BUDI)

Scholarships for Excellent Lecturers (BUDI) program was initially referred to as the Overseas Graduate Scholarship (Beasiswa Pendidikan Pascasarjana Luar Negeri or BPPLN). It does not require recipients to have a high undergraduate GPA, although a letter of admission from the targeted institutions is essential. The more lenient selection criteria for this program allowed 551 lecturers to study abroad in 2022 (MoECRT 2022). The name of this program was later changed to the Scholarship for Excellent Lecturers (Beasiswa Unggulan Dosen Indonesia or BUDI). BUDI limits itself to PhD scholarships through which 218 lecturers are currently studying abroad, drawing funds from the LPDP (MoRTHE 2017).

Masters Toward Doctorate Education Program (PMDSU)

The level of selectivity in the entrance examinations for public universities in Indonesia is widely recognized, particularly for the more popular programs such as Medical Sciences at the University of Indonesia (UI) or Electrical Engineering at ITB. However, this competitive aspect does not extend to graduate programs.

In order to attract the best students, MoECRT provides scholarships to the best undergraduate graduates (cum laude) to directly continue their study right through until the completion of a PhD program. This program is called the Masters toward Doctorate Education Program (Pendidikan Magister menuju Doktor untuk Sarjana Unggul or PMDSU). Undergraduate students with high GPAs are lured into a graduate program directly before graduation. They can commence graduate research while finishing their final year of undergraduate coursework, a process that will significantly reduce the time required to complete their thesis.

As a result of this program, 18 new PhDs graduated and 97 articles were published in reputable journals in 2017. In 2017, MoECRT provided support for 8,480 students studying in domestic PhD programs and 975 students in overseas programs (MoRTHE, 2017).

Bilateral Scholarship Programs

Since the establishment of LPDP, MoECRT has tried to optimize the available government funds by entering into agreements with bilateral agencies to co-finance scholarship programs. In one popular scheme, MoECRT covers the travel expenses and travel documents for scholarship recipients, while the bilateral partner covers the tuition and stipends. Such schemes allow MoECRT to support a larger beneficiary population. This scheme has been implemented in conjunction with the Indonesian German Scholarship Program (IGSP-DAAD), the Netherland’s Dikti-Neso Scholarship Program, the US’s Dikti-Fulbright Grants, and the UK’s Newton-Ristekdikti Scholarship Programme.

Philanthropic Organizations

In addition to the aforementioned agencies, a few other countries and philanthropic organizations offer scholarship programs through a variety of different schemes. These programs are mostly small in terms of beneficiary population, usually limited to one to three recipients per agency at most. Examples of such programs include the Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme (HKPFS), Mexico’s AMEXID scholarship, Saudi’s King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM), Cambridge International Scholarships, France’s INSEAD, the Oxford Clarendon Scholarship, ENS de Lyon, Leiden University’s Excellence Scholarship program (LExS), and the Warwick Chancellor’s International Scholarship.

7.3.3 Destination Countries

The highest percentage of students studying abroad under MoECRT scholarships are those studying in Japan (24.58%), followed by the UK (19.89%), Netherlands (10.32%), and Australia (10.13%), as illustrated in Table 7.7.⁵

Table 7.7 Distribution of students in top five destination countries

English-speaking countries, such as the UK and Australia, require a minimum level of English proficiency that is difficult to achieve for some students, particularly from less established institutions. For these applicants, countries with more lenient language requirements, such as Malaysia, are preferable.

7.3.4 Home Institutions

The majority of scholarship recipients (373, or 75.2%) are from public universities, while private universities are only represented by 123 students, or 24.80%. A small number of remaining recipients come from within the MoECRT administration (Fig. 7.3).

Fig. 7.3

Source MoECRT (2022)

Distribution of recipients by public or private home institution.

7.3.5 Fields of Study

In order to be relevant to national development, government policy is to prioritize STEM, as mentioned in Sect. 7.2.4. However, as presented in Fig. 7.4, a relatively high proportion of lecturers studying abroad are currently in the social science field—almost double that of basic sciences. This confirms the statement of a key MoECRT officer during the interview that the ministry does not yet have a strong and clear strategy toward human resource development (see Sect. 7.2.4).

Fig. 7.4

Source MoRTHE (2017)

Distribution of stuents by field of study.

7.3.6 Alumni Associations

In order to capitalize on the common spirit of studying in the same country, graduates have established alumni associations. The largest memberships are the Association of Indonesian Alumni from Japan (Persatuan Almuni Djepang—PERSADA), the Association of Australian Alumni in Indonesia (Ikatan Keluarga Alumni Australia—IKAMA), the Netherlands Alumni Association in Indonesia (Ikatan Alumni Nederland—IKANED), and the German Alumni Association (Ikatan Alumni Jerman—IAJ).

Activities conducted by these associations vary depending on the officers in charge of the associations. Therefore, most activities do not continue beyond the terms of the officers in charge. Persada was very active in the 1980s, even successfully establishing a private university bearing its name, Universitas Darma Persada. However, in recent years, its activities have not been widely reported. Activities conducted by the German Alumni Association (IAJ) were at their peak during President B. J. Habibie’s term of office from 1998 to 1999⁶ but slowed significantly after that.

7.3.7 Reviews of the Impacts of Study Abroad

The main beneficiary of studying abroad is unquestionably the recipients themselves in terms of improvement of skills as well as knowledge. Thus, these benefits can be considered private goods. However, in many cases, additional intangible benefits are more important and may be regarded as public goods, as defined by Kuncoro (2009). These benefits are assessed in the following sections:

• In pursuing their degrees, students are exposed to a different work ethos and are able to absorb the scientific culture and the academic atmosphere at the host institution, which can be considered as public goods. Other experiences may take the form of leadership, governance, culture, and democracy, which are mostly public goods, as they could potentially spill over to the surrounding community once the graduates return.

• While knowledge can now be acquired via ICT, specific experiences can only be acquired on site, exemplified by the phrase learn at the feet of the Master. In this context, research-based training may have a greater impact compared to course-based programs. Although research based education according to Humboldtian principles are mostly thought of as archaic, the basic concept is still relevant today. It is well understood that, in an age of massification of education, a globalized world, and rapid technological advancement, the pure Humboldtian might be seen as out of date. A modification of the original concept to be more suitable for modern-age implementation is needed.

Many overseas scholarship programs were designed as segmented programs, with cost components limited to providing support through overseas scholarships, i.e., travel, living costs, research, books, and tuition. The following points illustrate the observations made during this study.

Firstly, in its early development, few institutions or candidates paid much attention to the selection of host countries, institutions, or programs. They were grateful to have the opportunity to study at an overseas institution, an experience that was then considered an extreme luxury. Until 1970, returnees were allowed to bring a car with them on their return home as part of their personal belongings, and for many, this provided the only possibility of having a car.

As prosperity has increased, overseas study is no longer considered such a luxury. Although most are still unable to afford to finance it privately, a growing number of middle-class families are more than willing to allocate a significant portion of their income to provide the best education for their children.

Nowadays, some premiere domestic institutions have mature graduate programs, supported by well-qualified professors and state-of-the-art laboratories. These programs seek out the best students as inputs to ensure that they grow and become world-class and are therefore in direct competition with programs offered by overseas universities. Consequently, at least in some fields, students should be strongly encouraged to study in these domestic programs unless overseas programs provide clear benefits and advantages. The units responsible for overseeing scholarship programs should discourage candidates from studying in lower-quality overseas programs.

Secondly, while some returnees are quite successful in pursuing activities that positively impact society, many have failed to fully utilize their skills and knowledge. The following possibilities could be considered as potentially adverse outcomes for returnees:

• Some failed to make any changes or improvements to their home institutions. They were then co-opted by the mainstream laissez-faire, and no significant impact can be expected.

• Some tried hard to make changes but failed due to resistance from the surrounding community. As time passed, they became frustrated and gave up, and finally transferred to other institutions (mostly non-educational institutions) or even moved overseas. They might be personally or individually successful, but they failed to make any institutional impact.

• The third possibility, perhaps the rarest, is that they fought hard to make changes, leading to significant improvements.

The third possibility is more feasible when the number of returnees is sufficiently large to create a critical mass (see Box 7.2). They would also need support from key stakeholders, i.e., supra-structure, regulatory infrastructure, peers, and the local culture. The case of Politeknik Manufaktur Bandung (see Box 7.3) shows that a holistic and coherent package implemented from the beginning of the establishment can also make a difference.

For well-established universities, such as ITB and UGM, the diversity of destination countries and institutions brings greater benefits than a coherent development design package, as was applied to the Politeknik Manufaktur Bandung. Such package includes overseas scholarship, human resources and financial management, strategic planning, developing linkage with employers, defining institutional vision and focus, the single complete package approach is more suitable for newly established institutions or relatively young institutions.

Box 7.2: The Berkeley Mafia

In order to replace the Dutch professors sent back to their home country in the late 1950s, a significantly large number of young lecturers were sent to pursue advanced degrees at US institutions, supported by grants from USAID. Two of the largest groups were from the Faculty of Economics—UI (in cooperation with The University of California, Berkeley) and ITB (in collaboration with the University of Kentucky). The group from the Faculty of Economics was perhaps the largest group from an institution to pursue degrees at one single institution (UC Berkeley).

After returning from their studies between 1960 and 1975, most sought to be involved in developing the Indonesian economy. However, the political situation did not allow them to implement the theories they had learned. After the failed coup attempt in September 1965, the new administration relied on the advice of lecturers from the Faculty of Economics in formulating its economic policy.

Due to the trust they gained, their influence was felt in almost all branches of the government between 1970 and 1990. Parties jealous of their success and privilege called them “the Berkeley Mafia.” This is probably the best case to illustrate the impact of overseas study on economic development. Another example of successful reform is the systemic development of higher education initiated by the returnees from the US to IPB and ITB in the 1980s. They introduced a more structured system of study to replace the old continental Europe “free” style of study.

Without any intervention, it is difficult for such programs to have a sustained positive long-term impact. When returnees fail to achieve the expected impact, the biggest loser is students, who are denied the opportunity to gain the benefits of having a better-educated teacher. The author is of the opinion that a coherent and well-planned program of overseas scholarship has a higher possibility of success.

Box 7.3: Politeknik Manufaktur Bandung

In 1975, the Swiss government provided a grant to establish the Swiss Polytechnic Mechanics in Bandung, and it began to take admissions in 1976. The grant was not limited to civil works and equipment but included scholarships for lecturers, visiting professors from Swiss institutions, and technical assistance to develop a Swiss model of vocational education.

The Polytechnic Mechanics in Bandung (PolMan Bandung) was so successful that in 1980 the World Bank provided a loan to establish six new polytechnics using it as a model. Since then, hundreds of public and private polytechnics have been established. A large majority of the new polytechnics see PolMan Bandung as their role model for development. While the original Swiss grant was terminated long before 1980, the legacy of the Swiss culture of vocational education continues even today.

This may comprise the best example of a coherent development package that has achieved a long-term impact, lasting much longer than the project itself. A similar example, in a different context, can be seen in the establishment and subsequent development of Politeknik Elektronika Negeri Surabaya (PENS), supported by JICA assistance.

Other key concerns regarding the success of overseas study abroad in include the following aspects.

• (a) Pre-departure training to develop an understanding of appropriate issues and matters relevant to the local social and natural environment is worthwhile. In addition to lectures or seminars on culture and the prevailing regulations of the destination country and institution, a small scholarship allowing candidates to visit local industries and discuss problems and other issues would be beneficial.

• (b) In some cases, recipients are offered the opportunity to extend their stay in the host country to continue their research. Since they are registered as scholarship recipients, they need approval from their employer (home institution). In prevailing regulations on student visas also mean that destination country employers will require them to change their visa status.

  While this opportunity is very central to the development of networks, most proposals are unfortunately rejected, either due to the regulations on passport extensions or the lack of understanding on the employer’s side. Successful cases can only be observed in the case of “rebellious young Turks,” whereby recipients and direct supervisors at the home institution agree to take the risk without formal approval.

  The most valuable benefit acquired from this scheme is the graduates’ understanding of the needs of industry, business, employer, and community at large. After returning home, for quite a significant period, they will be able to choose the most relevant areas for developing research agendas. In many cases, they are able to maintain communication with their former host institutions and industries—and even develop opportunities for collaboration.

• (c) Home institutions should develop a long-term institutional strategy to provide the basis for selecting the fields and institutions for study abroad programs. The link between the institution’s priority fields of study with the corresponding overseas program should become a primary criterion.

  Such a selection process is likely to be more effective when the intended supervising professor’s publications have been rigorously studied by a faculty committee before deciding whether to send a lecturer. Nevertheless, many institutions may not possess a sufficient level of sophistication and competence to conduct the required assessment. To address this and provide additional support, DGHERT could establish a panel of national experts in relevant fields to offer advice and recommendations.

• (d) In the future, a re-entry program specifically designed for each type of institution will be required to prepare returnees to begin their “second life” at home. Suitable re-entry programs should be developed to accommodate each institution’s unique characteristics, and a centrally designed program should be avoided. Since many institutions might not have sufficient capacity to develop such programs, a panel of national experts could be assigned to provide assistance.

• (e) In the case of Indonesia, the Center of Sciences and Technology (Pusat Ilmu Pengetahuan dan Teknologi or Puspiptek) in Serpong, previously administered under the Ministry of Research and Technology, is equipped with state-of-the-art laboratory equipment. To date, the sharing of these facilities with academic researchers is still hampered by bureaucratic procedures.

7.4 Institut Teknologi Bandung—ITB

7.4.1 Historical Perspective

The history of ITB is closely linked to the struggle of the young nation in the first few years after the independence of the Republic of Indonesia. The Technische Hoogeschool te Bandoeng (TH te Bandoeng, TH Bandoeng, or THS) was established by the Dutch colonial government in 1920. It was closed following the outbreak of World War II but reopened in 1944 by the Japanese Military Government under the name Bandung Kōgyō Daigaku (BKD).

When Universitas Indonesia (UI) was formally established in 1950, the campus in Bandung became its Faculty of Engineering and Faculty of Natural Sciences. Finally, on March 2, 1959, it became a fully independent institution: the Institut Teknologi Bandung.

7.4.2 Institutional Profile

Governance

The highest prevailing regulation for ITB, the ITB statute, was decreed as Government Regulation 65/2013 and signed by the President of the Republic of Indonesia. Governance of ITB is overseen by the Board of Trustees, which is responsible for defining general institutional policies, approving institutional strategies and the master plan, appointing and dismissing the Rector, reviewing the annual budget, and overseeing the overall operation of the institution, among other roles.

The Academic Senate, the highest authority in academic matters, consists of lecturers representing academic disciplines. In addition to the elected members, the Rector, Vice-Rectors, and Deans are ex-officio members of the Academic Senate.

The department is the smallest resource unit, which reports to the faculty’s dean. It is responsible for managing resources and offers one or more academic programs. Lecturers with similar academic expertise, called Kelompok Keahlian (KK) or Groups of Expertise, teach in the same academic program. KKs develop the curriculum, distribute teaching assignments according to each lecturer’s expertise, and develop master plans for each department.

Campuses

The main campus of ITB is located in the Bandung urban area, accommodating around 25,000 students. In the last 50 years, however, the city of Bandung has become overdeveloped, and the 29-hectare campus is now considered overcrowded, with no possibility of further expansion.

To accommodate more students as well as activities, an additional 40-hectare campus was acquired in Jatinangor, east of Bandung, in 2016. By 2018, this campus housed around 300 students. ITB’s policy is that all new study programs will be located on the Jatinangor campus. Two additional campuses in the Cirebon and Walini areas are currently in preparation.

Academic Programs

ITB offers education programs in a wide variety of academic disciplines across 32 study programs—from sciences, engineering, business and management to arts and design. These programs are offered in eight faculties, five schools, and a graduate school.

Academic Staff

According to the most recent data, the total number of teaching staff is 1361 (ITB, 2018b). Around 75% of teaching staff have a PhD degree, 22% a Master’s degree, with the remaining holding a Bachelor’s degree.

Due to its heavy teaching load for conducting service courses, the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has the highest number of teaching staff (205). All first-year students are required to take basic courses in mathematics, physics, and chemistry, all taught by staff from this Faculty. Many programs still require relevant advanced courses in mathematics, physics, and chemistry, even after the common first year.

A significant number of the teaching staff in the Faculty of Arts and Design only hold Bachelor’s degrees, although many have produced internationally acclaimed artworks and are considered maestros. In this discipline, achievements are not measured by academic degrees, and the artworks created are a more important indicator of achievement.

Student Enrolment

The overcrowded urban campus in the city of Bandung did not previously allow ITB to expand its enrolment. Therefore, the student enrolment was capped at 25,000. Only after its acquisition of the Jatinangor campus was gradual expansion possible (Fig. 7.5).

Fig. 7.5

Student enrolment at ITB by academic level, 2013–2016. Source ITB (2018a)

The enrolment in the Master’s and Doctoral-level degrees is significantly lower than the undergraduate program, as these programs require individual supervision.

Financing

As an elite university, ITB has received various forms of support through government and international funding. Previous major investments in research infrastructure and graduate education have been provided under the World Bank projects, e.g., University Development II and URGE. The URGE project provided competitive grants for inter-university centers. Under the World Bank-supported “Quality of Undergraduate Education” project, ITB has successfully acquired additional funding for several of its programs. Significant investment in infrastructure has also been received under the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) ITB Development Projects 1 and 2.

Figure 7.6 presents the sources of funds in ITB in the last four years. The government allocation was significantly decreased in 2015 by 17.6%. It increased slightly in 2016 before falling again by 3.2% in 2017. The government's contribution to ITB has been worrisome, with a declining trend over the last four years.

Fig. 7.6

Source LKITB (2017)

Sources of funding for ITB, 2014–2017 in IDR million.

On the other hand, self-generated revenue has consistently increased over the last three years. Sources of self-generated revenue include student tuition and fees, consultancy contracts, interest, profits, and private grants. In 2012, a law was passed capping the proportion of tuition and fees that can be acquired from students, while the option of expanding student enrolment was hampered by an overcrowded urban campus.

7.4.3 Institutional Policy

Mission Statement

The vision of ITB is to be an outstanding, distinguished, independent, and internationally recognized university that leads changes toward the welfare improvement of the Indonesian nation and the world. The mission statement of ITB, as stated in its Strategic Plan 2017–2020, is to innovate, share, and apply sciences, technology, arts, social sciences, and humanities, to produce excellent human resources for the betterment of Indonesia and the world (ITB 2015).

Strategic Plan 2017–2020

Based on the stated vision and mission, ITB has developed a Strategic Development Plan for 2017–2020 (Fig. 7.7).

Fig. 7.7

Source ITB (2015)

Conceptualization of ITB 2020.

The two main objectives will be achieved through excellence in teaching, research, and innovation, as demonstrated in the following section.

Excellence in education will be achieved by ITB through:

• producing reliable and trustworthy graduates; and

• becoming the center for culture and an academic atmosphere that nurtures creativity and innovation.

Excellence in research will be achieved by ITB through research to:

• solving community problems;

• identifying, discovering, developing, and adding value to the Indonesian assets; and

• supporting ITB’s role in the advancement of science, technology, and arts through global cooperation.

Excellence in community service, innovation, and entrepreneurship will be achieved by ITB through:

• services and collaboration with society as relevant to its academic competency;

• community services that are integrated with education and research;

• consistently capitalizing on creativity and innovativeness to produce innovation; and

• entrepreneurial spirit.

7.4.4 Study Abroad Programs

Nominations for staff applying for overseas study are initiated by the Group of Expertise (Kelompok Keahlian or KK)⁷ according to the strategic plan. Consistency in selecting fields of study based on institutional strategy, choice of host institutions, and destination country for staff varies between KKs. The central administration does not impose any preferences.⁸

The insufficient directions from each KK and institution could split the expertise in the KK, potentially leading to fragmentation. Staff with similar scientific expertise could fail to reach the critical mass to build strong research groups and expertise, undermining team spirit.

Japan is the top destination country with the highest number of graduates from ITB, followed by the USA, as illustrated in Table 7.8. The number of staff that have graduated from the USA has declined significantly in recent years, and most USA graduates have either retired or passed away.

Table 7.8 Number of PhD graduates at ITB by top ten destination countries

Currently, the highest number of ongoing staff studying abroad is in Australia, trailed by Japan. Consistent with Sect. 7.4.2, the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has the highest number of staff who have graduated from an overseas institution, as depicted in Table 7.9.

Table 7.9 Number of PhD graduates at ITB by academic field

Most ITB staff studying abroad are relatively young, as they do not have any significant family obligations. Somewhat older staff who choose to study abroad are either seeking to continue their doctorate program at home or undertaking a “sandwich” program.⁹

The main risk of studying abroad is the potential loss of opportunity to get involved in significant initiatives in Indonesia since, as experts in their fields, they are commonly consulted by members of a variety of sectors. Staff with PhD degrees, however, have better opportunities.

7.4.5 Impacts of Study Abroad

ITB is an old and well-established institution and ranks as the top university in Indonesia; therefore, the impacts of studying abroad might be unique and not applicable to other, more junior institutions. The following points are the excerpts illustrating the findings from the visit to ITB.¹⁰

• (a) The teaching tradition is considered well-established at ITB, deriving its legacy from the Dutch academic tradition. However, the research culture is relatively new, even for ITB, and still requires significant nurturing.

  Developing a research culture requires consistency and commitment. Networking with previous research groups and supervisors could strengthen the endeavor. Nevertheless, networking with researchers from domestic institutions is just as or even more critical. Academics with the same research interests should establish communities and associations. They should also organize conferences and seminars, and establish scientific journals.

• (b) The special case of Adi Indrayanto (see Box. 7.4) depicts a champion who is persistent in pursuing his dream of a regulatory framework that will be supportive of domestic technology industries. Many of his colleagues focus instead on pursuing scientific achievements in the laboratory.

Adi is fighting for a better regulatory environment for the technology industry. His endeavor is typical of an engineer’s passion for collaboration with industries to bring their inventions to the market, usually referred to as the “Triple Helix.”

Box 7.4. National Policy on Technology Development

Adi Indrayanto earned his Master's in Canada and his PhD from the University of Manchester in Neural Networks. Even before departing from Indonesia, he had already developed a very strong passion for technological policy. He firmly believes that Indonesia will only develop its research-based industries if appropriate policies are in place.

During his study in the UK, he spent a large portion of his time participating in gatherings on developing technological policies. After returning to Indonesia, he became one of the strongest advocates for the development of a national technological policy. One of his primary accomplishments is the establishment of a government policy called Tingkat Komponen Dalam Negeri (TKDN). This policy mandates the inclusion of a certain proportion of domestic components in locally marketed products. It has been implemented in many industries and requires producers to establish production facilities in Indonesia.

Developing a government regulation that requires support from various government agencies and manufacturers is a significant achievement. It requires tremendous negotiation skills and endurance to acquire consensus from the interests of many diverse sectors.

Several times, Indrayanto has set up experimental start-up companies based on innovations produced by ITB laboratories, but each time, these companies have failed. From these failures, he is currently developing joint final-year projects involving the School of Business & Management and the Department of Electrical Engineering, aiming to produce marketable products in technology.

• (c) The special case of Mikrajuddin Abdullah (see Box 7.5.) depicts a champion who works outside the mainstream. The success of his almost eccentric strategy in pursuing excellence has been demonstrated in numerous publications in reputable international journals. As a physicist that typically focuses more on fundamental science, his strong passion for relevance is extraordinary.

Nevertheless, his strategy might not be easily replicated across different disciplines. For some fields, such as chemistry, access to laboratory equipment is essential.

Box 7.5. Relevant Quality Research

In 1998, Mikrajuddin Abdullah was granted an overseas scholarship from the Monbusho after his applications had been repeatedly (six times) rejected. He earned his PhD from the University of Hiroshima in 2002 in Chemical Engineering with 15 publications in reputable international journals. Although he was admitted to study Chemical Engineering, he was able to choose research topics relevant to his department in ITB, the Department of Physics.

His previous application failures gave him opportunities to better understand the relevant problems facing his fellow countrymen. In many cases, the supervisor’s research is irrelevant to Indonesia but facilitated by state-of-the-art scientific equipment, generous funding, and supported by conducive research environment. When they return home, they find that the environment is significantly below the level required to satisfactorily continue their research. Some can only publish articles when provided with post-doctoral opportunities at their previous host institution.

Based on this concern, he requires his PhD students to choose relevant research topics from simple phenomena. He has successfully supervised ten PhDs, each with four published articles in reputable international journals—again much higher than the standard requirement. In total, he has published a record of 7.5 articles in accredited international journals.

The physical process observed from the simple phenomenon of extracting fluid by squeezing a towel provides one example of how he chooses a research topic. Most of his research does not require sophisticated and expensive equipment. In one case, he modified simple kitchen equipment (e.g., a toaster) to support his research.

• (d) Many recipients follow the supervisor’s suggestions in choosing research topics with little consideration of their relevance to the average Indonesian. Returnees are shocked when they discover that there is insufficient support for research work in their home institution. Some are only able to publish during post-doctoral research at their previous host institutions. This indicates that the local research culture has not been strongly developed inside many existing KKs, and such situations are not sustainable in the long run.

• (e) Learning from the Mikrajuddin case, pre-departure training might be needed to expose candidates to the issues relevant to Indonesia, as presented in the previous study (Moeliodihardjo et al., 2012). The training could be designed as a small scholarship for short-term industrial internships to identify the problems faced in these industries.

• (f) Returnees are studying in many different countries with a wide variety of education systems. For a well-established institution such as ITB, diversity has enriched the education system. Different results might be observed in younger institutions, where greater diversity might increase the risk of disintegration.

• (g) The following points summarize information obtained from the interviews on the institutional impacts of studying abroad:

  • The most substantial institutional impact introduced by the returnees was in relation to changes to the curriculum. This could comprise changes to the content and substance, structure, or even the entire system.

  • At first, the doctoral program was conducted as a fully research-based program accompanied by a thesis defense at the final stage. It was later shifted toward a more blended system with the introduction of qualifications accompanied by mandatory and elective courses. It demonstrates the influence of the European, US, UK, and Japanese education systems.

  • The student–teacher relationship has become more relaxed and egalitarian as it absorbs the Western-style educational culture. Transparency of academic records also reflects cultural changes in the institution.

  • Another essential aspect that has been significantly affected by returnees concerns occupational health and safety, such as procedures for dealing with hazardous substances in the laboratory.

7.5 Universitas Gadjah Mada—UGM

7.5.1 Historical Perspective

The history of the establishment of Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) is as colorful as the drama of the country’s struggles following the proclamation of independence of the Republic of Indonesia. During the independence war of 1945–1949, Jakarta was occupied by Netherlands Indies Civil Administration (NICA) troops, who enforced a ruling that all administrative offices had to move to Yogyakarta. A group of academics initiated a process to establish a new national university in 1946, called Balai Perguruan Tinggi Gadjah Mada. The university took its name from Gadjah Mada, the Prime Minister (1290–1374) of the ancient Empire of Madjapahit. At the same time, several leading academics from THS Bandoeng initiated the establishment of Sekolah Tinggi Teknik in Yogyakarta. At that time, the spirit of nationalism was very strong that a group of academics initiated the establishment of a new national university. It was initially called Universiteit Negeri Gadjah Mada, but in 1949, the institution changed its name to Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM). However, the young Republic did not have sufficient resources to build the required infrastructure for UGM. Fortunately, the Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono IX, then the reigning Sultan of Yogyakarta, was quite generous in loaning a significant part of his palace to conduct education programs. Later the Sultan also donated 183.36 ha of his land to UGM (Buchori & Malik, 2004).

7.5.2 Institutional Profile

Governance

The highest prevailing regulation, the institutional statute, was decreed as the Government Regulation 67/2013, signed by the Indonesian President. The governing board of UGM comprises the 19-member Board of Trustees, whereby the Chair, Vice Chair, and Secretary are elected by the members of the board. The Board of Trustees is responsible for formulating general institutional policies, selecting the Rector, approving the strategic plan and annual budget, and assessing the Rector’s performance, among other roles.

Campuses

The current UGM campus is situated at Bulaksumur in the Special Region of Yogyakarta. The Bulaksumur campus is located on 183.36 hectares of land, which previously belonged to the Sultan of Yogyakarta and was donated to UGM by the late Sultan Hamengku Buwono IX (UGM, 2018).

UGM also conducts class lectures in remote locations in specific fields, such as management and accounting. Since these graduate programs are mostly targeted toward employed students, these selected locations are in big cities, such as Jakarta and Surabaya.

Academic Staff

In 2017, the number of teaching staff in UGM was 3,608. This represents the largest number of teaching staff in any university in Indonesia, apart from the Open University. A significant proportion of academic staff (36.7%), or 1327, hold a PhD degree (PDPT 2018). The number of staff recorded in the national database (PDPT) only includes permanent staff. Some programs might employ a significant number of non-permanent teaching staff from businesses and industry.

Student Enrolment

UGM enrolls the largest number of students at a single campus in the country, with a total student enrolment of 47,081 in 2018. Students are enrolled in undergraduate, graduate, three-year vocational diplomas, and professional/specialist programs, as illustrated in Fig. 7.8.

Fig. 7.8

Source UGM (2018)

Proportion of students enrolled at each level at UGM.

Financing

UGM receives support for its major investments in research infrastructure from several World Bank projects, e.g., University Development II and URGE. Several undergraduate programs in UGM have successfully acquired competitive grants (e.g., QUE) and other funding schemes. Under the JBIC UGM development project, UGM also received significant investment in infrastructure.

The sources of funding for UGM can be grouped into government allocation and self-generated revenue. The self-generated revenue includes consultancy contracts, interest, profits from commercial ventures, and private grants. The government allocation has been steadily decreasing, while on the other hand, self-generated revenue has increased (Fig. 7.9).

Fig. 7.9

Source LKUGM (2016)

Sources of funding for UGM from 2014 to 2016 in IDR million.

7.5.3 Policies and Strategies

Main Policies

The vision of UGM is to be a pioneering, world-class national university, excellent and innovative, to serve the nation and humanity based on national cultural values and ideology, Pancasila. The mission of UGM is to provide education, conduct research, and maintain community services, as well as the preservation and development of knowledge that is excellent and beneficial for society.

Strategic Plan 2012–2017

The stated objective is to develop UGM toward becoming the best possible institution by conducting the following activities, as formulated in its Strategic Plan 2012–2017 (UGM, 2012). This will be achieved by:

• producing excellent and competent graduates;

• enhancing national referral research, which is environmentally friendly and responsive to community problems;

• encouraging the community’s independence and sustainable prosperity through services;

• developing management that is just, transparent, accountable, participative, integrated, effective use of resources; and

• promoting strategic, effective, collaborative activities with relevant partners.

In order to achieve these objectives, the following strategies were formulated. There is a need to:

• establish comprehensive scientific development relevant to the needs of the community, government, and industry;

• solve national problems and ensure partiality toward marginalized groups in the community;

• optimize the use of resources by implementing information technology;

• develop networks to strengthen education, research, and community services’ resources; and

• build the capacity, responsiveness, and accountability for the management of education, research, and community services.

7.5.4 Study Abroad Programs

Almost 90% of PhD holders in UGM have graduated from overseas institutions. A significant proportion of them (22.55%) acquired their PhDs in Japan, followed by 15.54% from Australia, 11.46% from the USA, 9.42% from the UK, 8.58% from the Netherlands, and 5.81% from Germany, as illustrated in Table 7.10. Most of the senior staff consists of graduates from the USA who earned their degrees in the 1970 and 1980s.

Table 7.10 Number of PhD graduates at UGM by top six destination country

7.5.5 Impacts of Studying Abroad

The following points summarize the observations that can be drawn from the information obtained on UGM.

A significant institutional impact of studying abroad is demonstrated by staff who graduated from Japan. A strong link between the graduates and their sensei is continuously well-maintained after they return home. The best example of this phenomenon is Prof Ika Dewi Ana, who has successfully developed numerous inventions, patents and products out of her research collaborations.

Although weaker in personal relationships, the German “connection” has attracted significant research funding and support for research. The case of Dr Doni Prakasa Eka Putra, who graduated from RWTH Aachen, Germany, serves as a prime example of this. He has successfully attracted significant funding to undertake research collaborations with German institutions and furnish a state-of-the-art geological laboratory.

Most graduates from English-speaking countries, such as the UK, USA, and Australia, do not experience such advantages.

7.6 Conclusions and Recommendations

7.6.1 Conclusions

The following section summarizes the salient points of the findings and key recommendations of this study.

• (a) For study abroad scholarships to be successful, a coherent and well-planned program is essential.

• (b) A coherent development package can be considered an important approach, particularly for newly established institutions where qualified human resources are not readily available. The case of Politeknik Manufaktur Bandung (Polman) and Politeknik Elektronika Negeri Surabaya (PENS) are good examples.

• (c) In cases where strong political consensus can be reached to focus on a specific field, a large number of academic staff could be given overseas scholarships to reach a critical mass. Lessons can be learned from cases such as the development of the national macro-economy in the 1970s and 1980s.

• (d) At established institutions such as ITB and UGM, the diversity of countries where overseas study was undertaken helped to enrich the academic atmosphere. At young and newly established institutions, on the other hand, different schools of thought and cultures could be problematic and might create unnecessary friction.

• (e) A strong bond between the alumni and the learning institution needs to be developed and maintained, particularly after graduates return to their home institutions. The case of the link between Japanese universities and their graduates offers a model of best practice.

• (f) Although quantitative studies are yet to be conducted, most graduates appear to find it difficult to apply their skills and knowledge to solve problems at home. The problem of relevance might need more attention in the future.

7.6.2 Recommendations

There are two potential programs that could be used to enhance existing staff scholarships for studying abroad. These programs were proposed in the “Final Report: Developing Strategies for University, Industry, and Government Partnership,” prepared by the Education Sector Analytical and Capacity Development Partnership (Moeliodihardjo et al., 2012).

The first program could provide candidates with a small grant that offers short-term exposure to local industries before they undertake their PhD studies abroad. At the end of the program, the candidates may be able to select a more appropriate scientific discipline relevant to the problems faced by local industries.

The second program could provide returnees with a small grant, allowing them to undertake one or two short internship stints in local industries or for staff from industries to have a short-term R&D assignment at a university.

Notes: The interviewees granted permission to the editors and authors to publish their names and the content of the interview in this book.

This chapter is adapted from the Higher Education in Indonesia: Impacts of Study Abroad Programs on Academic Institutions, a report published by the JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development (https://www.jica.go.jp/Resource/jica-ri/ja/publication/booksandreports/sgjqgc0000004nvu-att/20230313_indonesia.pdf). The Author has obtained full permission from the JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development to reprint and adapt this report for this OA book.