Page 18 - KLIPING BELMAWA (14 JUNI 2019 - SORE)

university was because he did not want to be a loser among his peers.
He was confident enough not to look at private universities because his UTBK score was above average.
Both Narendra and Yudha failed to make the cut in the SNMPTN, which only grants places for enough applicants to fill 20 percent of all seats at state universities.
They have a bigger chance in the SBMPTN, which provides a minimum quota of 40 percent.
Education expert Totok Soefijanto said students should not put the priority on the university choice, private or state-run, but more into the majors they were aspiring to enter.
“Students should focus on which competency they could get into and the specialization of each university,” he told the Post on Wednesday.
“The most important thing is whether a university can accommodate a student’s aspiration, regardless of whether it is a state or private university.”
Totok, however, did not elaborate on how to finance studying at a private university, which can be more expensive than a state one.
He acknowledged that state universities were a safe choice as they carried some degree of prestige and were less costly.
Students who fail both the SNMPTN and the SBMPTN still have a third chance to enter the state university of their choice through an entrance test administered by each university, providing a maximum of 30 percent of the total available seats.
The so-called independent program, however, calls for hefty tuition fees.
.“Yes [it is more costly], but I plan to do a part time job so I can pay my own [boarding house] rent and daily needs,” said Narendra, who said he would take a gap year before trying for another year if he failed to enter state university this year from the three channels.
The independently administered university entrance test is allowed once a state university assumes the state university legal entity (PTN-BH) status, allowing it to manage its finance independently and seek extra funding to develop the university. However, Totok saw a misconception of how PTN-BH universities in Indonesia were operated. He said there was a slight difference between Indonesian BHMN universities and universities abroad.
“Many universities in the world grew amid a limited budget from the state, so they are urged to find ways to seek funding,” he said.
“That’s why they try to boost non-traditional income, for example from research, patents and partnership with industries.”
Although he believed that the various admission channels and PTN-BH status could not directly affect the quality of the university, he believed that Indonesian universities should shift from dependence on tuition fees.
By increasing non-traditional income, universities could lower tuition and should be able to reach education inclusion, Totok said. (asp)