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As Irpan currently in an entry-level management position, he chose to pursue a degree in management studies.
“The degree relates well to my current job and I will most likely use it if I have my own business some day,” he said, adding that he tried to maintain a well- balanced life by setting aside one day a week for leisure and one day for his studies.
“I use one day to focus on studying, including before and after I get home from work daily.”
Another worker who is balancing a job and school is 21-year-old Retno Kesumasari, a credit card saleswoman in West Jakarta. She approaches potential customers while pursuing an accounting degree at the Economics Academy (STIE) Bisnis Indonesia in Kebon Jeruk, West Jakarta. Indonesia has more than 4,680 higher education institutions, according to the Research, Technology and Higher Education Ministry’s latest data. Among them, only 438 are state universities. In Jakarta alone, there are 423 higher education institutions and only 19 are state universities; the rest are privately run, like Retno’s school.
Hailing from Langkat regency in North Sumatra, Retno said she moved to Jakarta in 2015 hoping to become more independent and to improve herself. She signed up at STIE in 2017 to get her degree.
“After I get my degree, it will be easier for me to get jobs. In the meantime, [studying] can improve my knowledge and mindset,” Retno said on Sunday. She works six days a week and attends classes at the academy every Sunday — an arrangement that she had been able to negotiate with her employer. Like Irpan, she also sends money back to her parents in North Sumatra if she receives a bonus from work. She once missed paying her tuition, a monthly installment of Rp 350,000.
“I paid it back the next month by [working hard] until I received a bonus,” Retno said, adding that she still had to sign a letter promising to pay the missed tuition installment as soon as possible.
With about 1,500 students, STIE Bisnis Indonesia mainly caters to workers seeking to earn a degree, who make up about 80 percent of the student body, according to admission officer Teddy Febriansyah.
The academy offers regular morning classes, night classes and an extension program that holds classes on Sundays.
Aware that most of its students also have a full-time job, Teddy said STIE Bisnis Indonesia took a relaxed approach with tuition, giving students a week to make up for any missed payments.
“[We aim] to help workers gain a degree at an affordable cost,” Teddy said. He said the academy had never encountered any operational problems from students who missed their tuition payments, although some students might have to retake a whole semester if they miss a semester’s worth of tuition.
Many schools in Greater Jakarta offer similar programs for workers. They also offer flexible class hours and flexible payment terms. However, many are not included in the country’s top 1,000 higher education institutions, according to the ministry. Still, they offer hard workers like Irpan and Retno