{
    "success": true,
    "data": {
        "id": 1168965,
        "msgid": "a-degree-is-not-everything-1447893297",
        "date": "2005-08-29 00:00:00",
        "title": "'A degree is not everything'",
        "author": null,
        "source": "JP",
        "tags": null,
        "topic": null,
        "summary": "'A degree is not everything' The government has woken up to the issue of bogus universities that have provided, according to a report, unlicensed degrees to many of its officials, including former vice president Hamzah Haz. The Jakarta Post asked residents for their reactions to the issue. Ali, 30, works at a publishing company.",
        "content": "<p>'A degree is not everything'<\/p>\n<p>The government has woken up to the issue of bogus universities<br>\nthat have provided, according to a report, unlicensed degrees to<br>\nmany of its officials, including former vice president Hamzah<br>\nHaz. The Jakarta Post asked residents for their reactions to the<br>\nissue.<\/p>\n<p>Ali, 30, works at a publishing company. He lives in South<br>\nJakarta:<\/p>\n<p>Obtaining certificates from bogus universities is an insult to<br>\nthe intelligence because people are buying university degrees,<br>\nwhile others have to study hard to get scholarships and do their<br>\nresearch and pass their examinations.<\/p>\n<p>In Indonesia, a title is seen as something prestigious, while<br>\nthe capability of a person should be measured not by how many<br>\nacademic titles they hold but on their competency and<br>\nprofessionalism.<\/p>\n<p>I think, from the beginning, the Ministry of National<br>\nEducation and police should stop and arrest people who are<br>\ninvolved in this practice. People only started talking (about the<br>\npractice) after one incident was reported recently. Why didn't<br>\nthe authorities do anything before?<\/p>\n<p>I think people should understand that academic titles are not<br>\nthe top achievements in life, there are greater things to strive<br>\nfor like competency and professionalism.<\/p>\n<p>Prodita Kusuma Sabarini, 23, is a non-governmental<br>\norganization activist who lives in Bogor:<\/p>\n<p>As far as I'm concerned the institution that issued unlicensed<br>\ndegrees is not a new education institution.<\/p>\n<p>Many government officials graduated from that institution, if<br>\nI'm not mistaken. So why has the government revealed the practice<br>\nnow? It doesn't make any sense.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe the government just doesn't have an adequate system to<br>\nsupervise the operation of education institutions, so that this<br>\nkind of problem happens over and over again.<\/p>\n<p>I think this problem also compounds the feeling that<br>\nIndonesians have that a degree is everything. They think that the<br>\ndegree will give them status. What's the point of having a degree<br>\nif you aren't capable of achieving it yourself.<\/p>\n<p>The government needs to take a good, hard look at the<br>\neducation system so that this sort of thing won't happen again.<\/p>\n<p>-- The Jakarta Post<\/p>",
        "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/a-degree-is-not-everything-1447893297",
        "image": ""
    },
    "sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
    "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}