Higher Education and Golden Indonesia 2045

To realize the concept of an entrepreneurial university, synergy between higher education, research institutions and the development of the business and industrial world is needed.

The following article was translated using both Microsoft Azure Open AI and Google Translation AI. The original article can be found in Perguruan Tinggi dan Indonesia Emas 2045

KOMPAS/HERYUNANTO

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These days, the attention and energy of the Indonesian people are focused on the registration of presidential and vice-presidential candidate pairs who will compete in the Presidential Election 2024.

Whoever is elected should be able to accelerate the national development in all fields so that there will be an advanced, prosperous, and just society.

The ideals of the Indonesian nation to become a sovereign, advanced and sustainable archipelago are contained in the Vision Golden Indonesia 2045. To support the implementation of this vision, the Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas has prepared a National Long Term Development Plan (RPJPN) 2025-2045 which contains 5 main targets, 8 development agendas and 17 development directions.

The five main targets are equivalent per capita income to that of developed countries, poverty reduced to zero percent and inequality decreased, increased international leadership and influence, improved human resource competitiveness, and a decrease in greenhouse gas emissions intensity towards zero emissions.

This target can be achieved by fulfilling several requirements, including stable social and political conditions, available superior and competitive human resources, and the establishment of adequate research, innovation, and business ecosystems. The abundant natural resources wealth is a capital for achieving Indonesia's Golden Vision with the best possible management.

The aspirations of the Indonesian people to become a sovereign, advanced, and sustainable archipelagic state are embodied in the Golden Indonesia 2045 Vision.

The role of universities

In the history of the founding of tertiary institutions (PT) or universities there have been changes in mission from time to time. In the Middle Ages, universities functioned as places for the dissemination of knowledge. The late 19th century saw the use of science to create technology, beginning the incorporation of research into the mission of universities—the so-called First Academic Revolution.

At that time, universities began to recognize and practice the principle of academic freedom and run a close connection between teaching and research. The Second Academic Revolution occurred in the mid-20th century, which involved an important transformation of the university's mission with its intense involvement in technological innovation (Plonski and Carrer, 2009).

The role of HEIs in society continues to grow with the addition of a third mission apart from education and research, namely contributing to economic development through the transfer of research results to the economic system (Etzkowitz, 1993). Currently, it is believed that PT has an important role in science and technology-based economic development. In the modern world, entrepreneurial universities are recognized as key actors determining competitiveness, economic growth and wealth creation (Fayolle and Redford, 2014; Mian, 2011).

The concept of the entrepreneurial university developed by Etzkowitz (1993) is the core of the triple helix model. This model is based on the idea that the potential for innovation and economic development lies in the role of universities and cooperation between three pillars, namely universities, industry and government. In this model, each actor in the system must play a role, but one must work together well and synergize with each other.

The university has produced new science and technology with potential for use in the industrial sector. The government acts as the regulator and sets the rules of the game, while the industry serves as the funding support, managerial skills, and networks that drive innovative business development.

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According to Feola et al (2021), the measure of a university's ability in its position as an entrepreneurial university to produce and deliver technology and its orientation towards entrepreneurship can be seen from several factors. These factors are the number of patents produced in a certain period of time, the number of spin-off companies created, the presence/absence of academic incubators, the number of consulting or research contracts with external organizations, and the number of consortia and associations the university participates in. which aims to promote downstream technology.

Entrepreneurial university graduates are expected not only to become job applicants, but also to become pioneers in the field of entrepreneurship that can create jobs.

Education improvement

Rokhmin Dahuri (Kompas, 8/8/2023) said, to be able to generate quality, inclusive, environmentally friendly and sustainable economic growth, vocational education institutions and HEIs must have a curriculum, teaching methods, practicums and a good campus life atmosphere that produces superior graduates, namely having world-class technical competence, entrepreneurship, soft skills, superior work ethic, and noble morals.

Asep Saefuddin (Kompas, 23/8/2023) proposed that the development of education to produce potential human resources as a lever for achieving a Golden Indonesia 2045, must be complemented by skills education, entrepreneurship and mastery of foreign languages.

Various proposals in this matter represent an enrichment of Indonesia's higher education goals in Law No. 12/2012, which aims to develop students' potential to become morally upright individuals who master science and technology, create knowledge through research, and engage in community service.

The learning system on campus should encourage students to utilize learning resources, both internal and external, by using information technology.

To produce superior human resources, the curriculum must be reorganized, not only equipping students with the core competencies of study programs (prodi), but also contemporary knowledge and skills, such as big data, internet of things, artificial intelligence, and < i>e-commerce, opens up wide opportunities for extracurricular activities for leadership development and team work, and facilitates activities in the field of entrepreneurship and internships in industry.

The learning system on campus must encourage students to utilize learning resources, both internal and external, using information technology. In this way, students can learn not only from their own lecturers, but also from other learning sources which are widely available in the learning management system.

The existence of a unit in a company to facilitate lifelong learning development is crucial. In addition, students must also be encouraged to have a global perspective so that internationalization and international cooperation must continue to be strengthened.

Merdeka Belajar Campus Merdeka with the aim of preparing PT graduates who have soft skills and hard skills that are mature and relevant to user needs must really be designed and implemented well because of the reality in the field superior learning outcomes on the one hand obtained outside campus reduce learning outcomes on the other hand.

With the great need for human resources who have expertise in the field of science and technology in order to increase the nation's productivity through the downstreaming of natural resources, industrialization, and overcoming the lagging behind in science and technology, science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education must be increased and strengthened. . PTs are encouraged to increase their number of study programs in the field of science and technology and continue to strengthen existing social humanities study programs.

To prepare superior potential students in the field of science and technology, efforts must be made at the elementary and secondary education levels so that more students have a strong interest in this field, with great teachers and adequate supporting facilities. Currently, the percentage of students in mathematics and natural sciences (MIPA), engineering, agriculture, and health is only 34.3 percent of the total number of registered students, and the total number of graduates is only 41 percent of all programs in Indonesian universities.

To realize the concept of an entrepreneurial university, synergistic cooperation must be sought between higher education, government research institutions, and research and development units in the world of business and industry. This collaboration can direct economic value innovation according to industry needs by involving lecturers and students in the learning process. From the triple helix, the term penta helix, emerged, namely the synergy between PT and government, the private sector, industrial society and the media.

In practice, not all HEIs take the role of research universities and/or entrepreneurial universities. There are those that act as teaching universities with a focus on producing skilled workers in the job market. Collaboration between educational universities and the industrial world is aimed at introducing students to the practices that occur in industry as an effort to increase the relevance of education on campus to industrial needs.

Panut MulyonoProfessor at the Faculty of Engineering UGM, Chancellor of UGM 2017–2022

Panut Mulyono