Popular University Programs Unchanged
The same university programs have remained popular throughout the years among high school and vocational high school graduates across the nation. Quotas must be established for certain programs.
JAKARTA, KOMPAS – It was announced on Tuesday (9/7/2019) that 168,742 high school graduates across the nation have passed the 2019 State University Entrance Exam (SBMPTN) for 85 state universities. The same programs of study have remained popular for the past several years.
The SBMPTN followed a computer-based exam (UTBK) that was held in March and April. This enabled SBMPTN participants to discover their academic aptitude, for taking the SBMPTN in the programs most suited to them.
The Research, Technology and Higher Education Ministry’s data shows that 714,652 high school graduates out of the 877,853 who took the UTBK this year had registered for the SBMPTN. Of these, 168,742 passed the test for 85 state universities.
The top university programs include medicine, chemical engineering, agricultural technology, law, management and communications. State universities across the nation currently offer 3,186 programs, 226 of which opened in 2017.
Indonesian State University Rectors Council (MRPTI) chairman Kadarsyah Suryadi said on Tuesday that the new programs were offered to ensure a “link and match” between university graduates and industry demand. Bachelor programs were dynamic in nature, in the sense that its graduates could pursue further studies at post-graduate levels or enter the workforce and apply their knowledge.
Learning and student affairs director general Ismunandar of the higher education ministry said on Tuesday that pure sciences university programs helped develop scientific minds, skills and competence. Bachelor’s degrees aimed to develop broad knowledge that could be adapted to any sector.
Universities needed to constantly update their vocational and pure sciences curriculums in line with the latest technological developments and increasingly challenging social issues. Consequently, curriculums were being evaluated biennially. “Vocational universities partner with industry to ensure a better ‘link and match’,” said Ismunandar.
University Entrance Exam Agency chair Ravik Karsidi, who is also a professor of science education at Sebelas Maret University, said that the sciences continued to evolve and, in time, the technical skills taught at universities could become outdated. The state must therefore map higher education programs to ensure their compatibility with the changing times and calculate the nation’s labor needs to create quotas for specific programs.
Higher education is divided into three career paths: vocational, academic and professional. The vocational path is the fastest way to meet industry’s labor demands, while the academic path aims to develop the sciences and ensure flexible skills. “The professional path is for grooming teachers and medical doctors. We need to calculate the labor demands of these professions every five years to prevent a surplus [of graduates],” Ravik explained.
Efficient
Higher education minister Mohamad Nasir said that implementing the computer-based exam increased efficiency in the. The UTBK enabled those registered to take the SBMPTN to learn their results in a week, which help them determine their academic aptitudes. Furthermore, since the SBMPTN was conducted online, it prevented unnecessary disruption to state universities due to traffic jams and other issues.
“More importantly, online testing prevents cheating, such as using joki,” Nasir said, referring to the practice of hiring someone else to take the exam for higher scores. Some UTBK takers had smuggled their cellphones into the exam room to take pictures of the exam questions on the computer screen and then uploaded them to social media. However, the UTBK sessions used different sets of exam questions.
The new system of taking the SBMPTN has caused a shift in the popularity of top state universities. In past years, the University of Indonesia (UI), Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) and Padjadjaran University (Unpad) had always been the top choices for high school graduates. This year, Brawijaya University (Unibraw), Diponegoro University (Undip), Indonesia Education University (UPI) and Semarang State University (Unnes) were among the top universities, indicating a tighter selection process.
“From the UTBK, high school graduates can assess their abilities, so they do not blindly pick programs,” said Nasir. Universities like UGM, UI, ITB, Unpad, Undip and the Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology still received the students with the highest UTBK scores, above 610.
MRPTI’s Kadarsyah, who is also the ITB rector, said that the UTBK allowed students to discover their skills and capabilities before registering to take the SBMPTN, and thus choose the programs that best fit their UTBK scores. The UTBK also helped prevent students from majoring in the wrong program.
Students that failed the SBMPTN can still take the entrance exams that each state university held independently. (DNE/FAI)