Admission test rules eased for applicants

Admission test rules eased for applicants

Sari P. Setiogi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Any high school senior who recently failed the national final
exams recently will be treated the same as other high school
students when they take the admission tests to state universities
this year.

The national committee for the admission test (SPMB) decided
not to implement a recently changed policy on the requirements
for applicants considering as the universities need more time to
disseminate the new procedures to the public.

"As it is a new policy implemented for high school graduates
this year, it might confuse the applicants and become unfair,"
the director of the central committee for the test, Boedi
Santoso, told reporters on Friday.

The new policy states that students competing for admission to
state universities have to show their graduation diplomas and
documents certifying that they passed the national exams. The
students that failed will be given a second chance to take the
national exams as soon as they are admitted to universities, but
if they fail they must leave school.

"It would be pretty confusing for applicants, as the admission
will also be available for graduates from the previous years in
2002 and 2001, when such a system did not exist," Boedi said.

About 10.6 percent from the total of 900,000 students who took
the national final exam this year failed.

There will be 82,950 seats on offer in 48 state universities
across the country. With an estimated number of applicants
reaching 400,000 this year, only about one out of five will be
accepted.

The number of students taking the admission tests is expected
to rise by 10 percent from last year, added Boedi.

The tests will be held on July 1 and July 2.

Last month, two prominent universities, Gadjah Mada University
(UGM) in Yogyakarta and the Bandung Institute of Technology
(ITB), organized the admission tests for students who were
willing to pay more for their study in the universities. There
were around 1,000 seats available, which require those who passed
to pay Rp 10 million to UGM and Rp 45 million to ITB each year.
The fees at the publicly financed universities are well above the
fees at most private universities in the country.

Boedi said the "commercial scheme" would not affect the normal
admission tests.

"This year we have two new other universities with the SPMB,
the Islamic State University in Banten and the Trunojoyo
University in Madura, so there will be additional seats," he
said.

The admission forms could be bought either collectively at
respective high schools or at 46 branches of Bank Negara
Indonesia (BNI) around the country.

Forms will be available at Rp 95,000 (US$11.18) for either one
option (science or liberal arts) and Rp 120,000 for both options.

Collective purchases have started, but forms distributed
through the bank will not begin until June 16. The registration
will be closed on June 27.

Materials tested include general knowledge, hard science
knowledge and liberal arts.

Scholarships will also be available from the committee for
3,000 impoverished students during their first year at a
university. The scholarships also cover registration fees,
transportation and accommodation when they take the selection
tests.