The Indonesian Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology in collaboration with hundreds of well-known universities at home and abroad has successfully organized the Indonesian International Student Mobility Awards (IISMA) program in 2021. The program comes as an opportunity for students who are in the S1 education level, especially those in semesters 4 through 6 to study at overseas universities for one semester. In addition to having the opportunity to attend educational programs and curricula outside Indonesia, students also have the opportunity to interact directly with international students, teachers, and the local community at overseas colleges. The program funded by the Ministry of Education also provides an opportunity for selected students to take subjects outside the study program of their origin.
As one of the best universities in Indonesia, Brawijaya University also participates in this international standard program. Of the various faculties at Brawijaya University, 14 students from the Faculty of Cultural Sciences (FIB) had the opportunity to participate in the IISMA program. We had the opportunity to interview Nurjihan Kansa Zalsabilla and Risha Febri Suryaningdyah, two English Literature students who participated in the IISMA in 2021. We asked them a few questions about their experiences during the registration process until their arrival and daily life while undergoing education abroad for one semester. Here is some information that we can summarize from them.
Nurjihan enrolled at the University of York, England by taking several courses in the faculty of Management and Politics as well as an Intercultural class. On the other side, Risha had the opportunity to study at Michigan State University, United States by taking courses in The World of Media, Women, and Health: Anthropological and International Perspectives, Human Capital and Society, and Women and Gender in Asia. When being asked about the reasons why they registered for the IISMA, their answers were almost similar. They both have had an interest in participating in scholarship programs, especially of which relate to student exchanges and abroad studies.
Regarding the registration process, Nurjihan and Risha experienced the same process. The academic requirements and immigration documents were quite easy to process. However, because the Covid-19 cases at that time were quite high, Visa management became rather little in need of extra effort. After completing all academic requirements, immigration, and health protocol documents, they are permitted to leave for their respective destination countries.
Continuing to their first arrival in the UK and America, they both must adapt to the environmental and cultural conditions in which they are located. One of the things that they both experience is food problems. Being accustomed to Indonesian food, they have to adapt a little to the food there which they think feels a little bland. Risha also briefly told about how the culture of freedom in the United States was seen from the habit of her students to immediately leave class to go to the toilet in the middle of the lecture hours without asking permission from the lecturer.
Regarding the learning curriculum in York, Nurjihan had felt somewhat burdened with a much more reading book than he had experienced during his lectures in Indonesia. She added that for this reason he had been confused about determining effective learning strategies. But over time she was able to adapt to the learning given there. In addition, she also added that at the University of York each subject was divided into 2, namely Lecture and Seminar classes. Lecture classes, such as lectures, are generally filled with exposure to material by lecturers. In the Seminar class students discuss with lecturers the material that has been explained. Each class session lasts 1 to 1.5 hours and the liveliness of students in the discussion becomes the main assessment.
Apparently while in the United States and England, they not only spent their time studying in class. Nurjihan and Risha were also involved in activities outside the academic. Nurjihan joined the debate community called Debate Society and won a debate competition. Meanwhile, on her campus, Risha had the opportunity to join a group called UNICEF in MSU. She also contributed to the appropriateness of donation activities there. Of course, besides following these communities they can also further develop their English skills by interacting with lecturers, fellow students, and other people in the surrounding who are native speakers of English.
Nurjihan and Risha agreed that the IISMA program was a very valuable and beneficial opportunity for students in Indonesia who wanted to feel what it was like to study at a well-known university abroad. Nurjihan added, With all costs borne by the government, and promised for the ease of conversion of 20 credits, so that participants would not be constrained in the academic system of their universities in Indonesia. Risha also emphasized that the program is not only a matter of adding to the experience of studying abroad but also building international relations and cultural exploration in our destination countries.
Citing information from the Kemendikbud, the implementation of the IISMA program in 2022 will collaborate with the world’s top 100 universities. The government has committed to sponsoring the whole costs which include registration fees and education fees, departure transportation costs, housing costs and living expenses, health insurance, daily transportation costs, Visa, books, and PCR test fees. With the increased quality assurance of partner universities abroad, the successful implementation of the IISMA program last year, and various benefits and educational benefits for the participants, predictably the enthusiasm of Indonesian students to register in the IISMA program this year will be far increased.
