In order to achieve the vision of Indonesia Emas 2045, the government continues to commit to implementing excellent human resource development to be able to lead the country in a digital era. Developing an excellent human resource is not only a duty for government, but also a responsibility to be carried out together through the program of educational improvement, knowledge, skill, and individual behavior in societies. A resilient and excellent quality human resource is hoped to make a positive impact on the improvement of independence, competitiveness, and national development.
Align with the commitment, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology (Kementerian Pendidikan, Kebudayaan, Riset, dan Teknologi – Kemendikbudristek) initiates Merdeka Belajar Kampus Merdeka (MBKM) program. MBKM was organized to prepare the students to practice their talent and interest by getting involved directly in the industry. MBKM policy gives students the right to learn for three semesters outside their study programs. This also realizes the innovative learning process in an autonomous and flexible university, so the students are able to excel in learning achievement, including behavior aspects, knowledge, and skill optimally. Furthermore, MBKM policy aims to enhance the graduate competencies, both soft skills and hard skills, to be more prepared and relevant to the demands of the age, as well as to prepare the excellent and resilient character for future national leaders. Here are several MBKM programs, including Magang dan Studi Independen Bersertifikat (MSIB), Kampus Mengajar, Indonesian International Student Mobility Awards (IISMA), Pertukaran Mahasiswa Merdeka (PMM), Membangun Desa (KKN Tematik), Proyek Kemanusiaan, Riset atau Penelitian, dan Kewirausahaan.
Universitas Terbuka (UT) as the 45th state university in Indonesia and the State Higher Education Institution of Incorporated Legal Entity in 2022, according to the government decree number 39 of 2022. Also, a pioneer in implementing the Open and Distance Learning systems as part of educational equality in Indonesia always shows commitment to enhancing access to higher education service quality and competitiveness globally. One of its forms of strategy is through the implementation of the MBKM program that has been implemented at UT since 2020.
Thus, UT organized the MBKM Expo 2024 as a real commitment to implement the MBKM program to explore the knowledge of the academics and students of UT. MBKM Expo acted as a socialization and a work of arts of students’ dissemination platform impacting student participation in the MBKM program. The theme of MBKM Expo Universitas Terbuka was
“A Limitless Knowledge Explorations”
This theme was chosen according to the MBKM program, which is suitable for students to explore the knowledge regarding their potential talent and passion to support their careers in the future. In addition, MBKM Expo 2024 program was a part of the EQUITY (ENHANCING QUALITY EDUCATION FOR INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY RECOGNITION) program by Lembaga Pengelolaan Dana Pendidikan (LPDP) funding. This event was held on April 29, 2024, at Universitas Terbuka Convention Center (UTCC), attended by the representative students of UT Bogor, UT Serang, and UT Jakarta, who were required to follow the MBKM program. Also, online on Zoom Meeting and Live Streaming on YouTube, followed by the required MBKM students from 4 departments (FEB, FHISIP, FKIP, FST) in the 4th and 5th semesters. The MBKM participants in 2021-2023, lecturers, staff, and the MBKM UT partners attended this event as well.
A set agenda for the MBKM Expo started with the explanation of this activity being reported by Dr. Kartono, S.Pd., M.Si., the Head of the MBKM UT program. In his remark, he stated in 2023, UT had the participation escalation of students following flagship and independent MBKM programs. 18.778 students followed the MBKM program, while 17.205 students took the courses through the ICE Institute. The number of UT students joining the MBKM program will increase with the launch of the MBKM UT Portal, which aims to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the information related to the MBKM program.
“One of the purposes of the MBKM implementation is to prepare the students to face the social changes, cultures, industries, and the advancement of technologies along with the improvement of students competencies according to the need of the times,” stated Mr. Kartono. Moreover, Prof. Ojat Darojat, M.Bus., Ph.D. in his instruction, stated that UT fully commits to and supports the implementation of the MBKM program, initiated by Kemendikbudristek, shown by the number of students who participated in various implemented MBKM programs, on top of that, some of them were awarded by the Diktiristek regarding their achievements and excellent performances. “I believe that UT students are more resilient than other students since they are accustomed to learning independently while many of them are also workers. With a passion for lifelong learning, I encourage UT students to utilize the MBKM program properly, especially for the 5th and 6th semesters students. Let’s run, outperform, and compete!” Prof. Ojat encouraged.
Afterward, UT Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs, Dr. Mohammad Yunus, S.S., M.A., delivered his speech, opening this event. “The MBKM program is a breakthrough that facilitates a new learning space for UT students to encounter the challenges of the 4.0 industry era. UT highly supports the MBKM programs as the students’ right outside their respective study programs by giving the opportunity to be in the industry directly.” In addition, Dr. Yunus also conveyed that the MBKM program shall explore the students’ potential, skills, critical thinking, analytics, and creativity.
A Talk show session in MBKM Expo was attended by 3 (three) keynote speakers, Kurnia Endah Riana, S.E., M.Com. as the Vice-Dean for Academic Affairs at the Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB) of UT, Asri Ardila Putri, S.Sos., M.Si. as the Head of Pertukaran Mahasiswa Merdeka (PMM) and Kampus Mengajar programs, along with Dr. Wachyu Hari Haji, MPM., CHRA as the Head of Magang dan Studi Independen Bersertifikat (MSIB) program. During the talk show, they delivered an explanation about the importance of MBKM implementation in higher education institutions to generate an excellent, resilient, and competitive generation.
The Head of Pertukaran Mahasiswa Merdeka (PMM) program and Kampus Mengajar, Asri Ardila Putri mentioned that to increase the number of MBKM program participants must start from the urge of the students to look for information. “In the digital era, students are able to look for information related to various educational programs or scholarships easily,” she stated.
“Kemendikbud provides various types of scholarships besides the Kampus Merdeka program, so they prepare their students to be information aware, which is one of the things to be considered by the higher education institution,” she continued.
Similar to her statement, the Head of Magang dan Studi Independen Bersertifikat (MSIB) program, Wachyu Hari Haji said that information is accessible on social media, such as on @kampusmerdeka, @pertukaranmahasiswamerdeka, and @magangmerdeka Instagram account. “By following those Instagram accounts, they can get updated information about those programs, which they can participate in,” he conveyed.
After the talk show session with the speakers, the event continued with a soft launch of the MBKM UT Portal, inaugurated by UT Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs Dr. Mohammad Yunus, S.S., M.A. He hoped that the MBKM UT Portal could provide a comprehensive understanding and information to the students related to the MBKM program so it could increase the number of students participating in the MBKM program easily.
After the soft launch of the MBKM UT Portal, the sharing session by the MBKM program alums was organized, and the MBKM exhibition showcase was held by the students. This session was attended by Haris Fadhilah as the alumnus of Magang dan Studi Independen Bersertifikat (MSIB) program, Shan Syuja Adiwinata as the alumnus of Indonesian International Student Mobility Awards (IISMA) program, Ikhdanul Widad Joban, as the alumnus of Bangun Desa program, Tubagus Jihad Alfarizi as the alumnus of Kewirausahaan program, Salsabila Pramesti as the alumnus of Kampus Mengajar program, and Fajar Fasha as the alumnus Pertukaran Mahasiswa Merdeka (PMM) program. This Sharing Session generated an important message to the students that self-understanding and setting are necessary before registering for the intended MBKM program. The Winner of the poster, creative video, and product competition were also announced after the Sharing Session.
The MBKM Expo event was organized with the hope of being a positive trigger for UT students, especially those who have not participated in the MBKM program yet. Furthermore, this event is hoped to be a positive progression to enhance the competency of the graduates, both soft skills and hard skills, to be more prepared and relevant in times, as the excellent character for a national future leader to enhance the human resource of Indonesia.
