Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology, Fauzan, on Friday informed that the ministry is currently reviewing the MBKM to determine which programs will be continued and which ones will be stopped.
"The minister said that the program will be evaluated and see which ones are good and those that are less effective will be stopped," he said.
So far, no conclusion has been reached on the future of the program initiated by former minister of education, Nadiem Makarim, he added.
The MBKM program allows students to take courses outside their study program for one semester and join in activities outside their university for two semesters.
Under the program, universities have the freedom to carry out Independent Campus activities that suit the needs and interests of their students.
The MBKM offers several sub-programs, including Certified Internship, Independent Study, Teaching Campus, Indonesian International Student Mobility Awards (IISMA), Independent Student Exchange, and Independent Entrepreneurship.
As of 2024, more than 400 thousand students and more than 30 thousand practitioners have taken part and benefitted from the MBKM program.
Earlier in November 2024, Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology, Satryo Soemantri Brodjonegoro, emphasized that the MBKM program is not mandatory for all students or campuses.
"Freedom means the ability to choose and even the freedom not to choose. Therefore, not choosing (to participate) is also allowed," he said.
He noted that several campuses in Indonesia are still not capable of running the program and do not have the fields offered by the program.
Therefore, he asked university leaders to only implement the MBKM program if they have a matching program and it adds value to their study programs.
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Translator: Sean Filo M, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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