Job scarcity keeps graduates in school<\/p>\n
A. Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Mirza, who just graduated from the Trisakti University law
\nschool earlier this year, is now busy preparing to go to
\nAustralia to continue his study.<\/p>\n
A \"S1\" (undergraduate) degree is no longer enough for the 20-
\nyear-old Mirza. He now wants to study international business law
\nat a university in Sydney.<\/p>\n
\"Although I have passed my S1 program with good grades, I
\nstill want to improve my knowledge and get a master's degree,\"
\nthe resident of Kebon Jeruk, West Jakarta said.<\/p>\n
Another S1 graduate, Boby, who graduated from the electrical
\nengineering school of the University of Indonesia (UI), claims
\nthat increasing competition among job seekers has made a S1
\ndegree insufficient to get a good job.<\/p>\n
\"The competition is getting tighter. While looking for a good
\njob, I decided to continue my study in management,\" said the 21-
\nyear-old, who has just passed an entrance test at the Jakarta
\ncampus of Yogyakarta's Gadjah Mada University to undertake a
\nmaster's degree in management.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Ria Ayu Intan Pratiwi, 19, a student at UI's school
\nof political and social sciences, said continuing \"S2\" (master's)
\ndegree study was good for S1 graduates as they were still fresh.<\/p>\n
\"I will continue to S2-level. My dad suggested that I continue
\nmy study since I'm still young,\" said Ria.<\/p>\n
Tighter competition in the country's job market, increasing
\nwillingness among youth to improve their knowledge, and the rise
\nin the financial wealth of many Indonesians, are among the
\nfactors behind the current trend, in which many fresh S1
\ngraduates are continuing their study to get master's degree,
\nrather than enter an uncertain job market.<\/p>\n
Education consultant Kevin Tan says that the number of
\nIndonesian students pursuing master's degrees overseas increases
\nevery year.<\/p>\n
\"Aside from studying their majors, they certainly want to
\nlearn English. Furthermore, the cost of education is not too
\nexpensive,\" said Kevin, who is also the secretary general of the
\nIndonesian International Education Consultants Association
\n(IKPII).<\/p>\n
While studying, he said, students could easily get part-time
\njobs to cover part of the cost of their education.<\/p>\n
About 5,000 Indonesian students from various levels entered
\nAustralian education institutions last year and some 800 students
\nenrolled in U.K. institutions during the same period. Although
\nthere is no precise data on previous years, it is believed that
\nthe number of students studying overseas is increasing.<\/p>\n
However, pursuing master's degrees overseas is not the only
\noption as many domestic universities are improving their quality
\nby, among other things, cooperating with foreign universities to
\nset up dual degree programs.<\/p>\n
Trisakti and UI, for example, are cooperating with
\nuniversities in Australia with their Magister Manajemen (MM)
\nprograms. Their graduates will get both MM and master's in
\nbusiness administration (MBA) degrees.<\/p>\n
In the dual degree programs, students study in English-
\nspeaking classes with local and foreign lecturers. The cost of
\nthe education is cheaper.<\/p>\n
Noted education expert Arif Rahman considered that many S1
\ngraduates met the requirements to pursue master's degrees.<\/p>\n
\"It's a good trend as far as the students passing the
\nselection requirements. I see that many of them are meeting the
\nrequirements to continue to S2 programs,\" Arif said.<\/p>\n
He said Indonesia still needed many more people with master's
\nand doctoral degrees.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/job-scarcity-keeps-graduates-in-school-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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