After Two Failures, Ramdhan Graduates as IPDN's Top Student

Muhammad Ramdhan successfully became one of the top graduates of the Institute of Domestic Governance (IPDN) after a long struggle. The local son had failed the IPDN entrance selection twice before finally passing on his third attempt. His determination to study at IPDN grew because he passed the campus gate almost daily and observed the activities of the internal security officers. “In the first year [of the test], I felt down because I had prepared quite well, starting from studying for the test, but it was not yet my destiny to pass,” Ramdhan said in a statement on Thursday (6/8/2026). Ramdhan recounted that when he was down, his father, a retired police officer with the rank of Inspector Second Class, and his mother, a retired teacher, continued to encourage and motivate him to try again. Both parents were very confident he would become an IPDN Praja. After failing the first selection, Ramdhan continued his education at a university in Bogor City while preparing to take the IPDN selection again. He regularly studied and did physical training, but failed again on his second attempt. Despite this, Ramdhan did not give up and continued to receive full support from his parents, who believed every process takes time. “Alhamdulillah, both parents never got angry or blamed me when I failed. [My parents said] good results will definitely come at the right time,” Ramdhan said. Ramdhan admitted that his parents’ support motivated him to keep trying. He used the failures from the two previous selections as evaluation material, starting from studying the question patterns in the Computer Assisted Test (CAT), devising strategies for answering questions, to practising time management. In the third year, Ramdhan’s efforts paid off when he was accepted as a candidate Praja of the XXXIII Cohort in 2022. “Every time I passed that campus, the desire to fight again always emerged. Finally, I passed in the third year,” he said. During the three tests, Ramdhan admitted he did not incur any costs apart from transportation and the SKD exam fee. Instead, he was grateful to be able to help ease his parents’ burden, considering all the facilities he received during his studies at IPDN were free. “The test is free, starting from the SPCP (prospective praja selection) registration, to life at IPDN, starting from living in the dormitory and uniforms, all are funded by the state,” he said. After being accepted into the Public Sector Human Resource Management study programme, Ramdhan committed to undergoing his education with discipline and consistency. This effort paid off when he was selected as one of the recipients of the Sapta Abdi Praja award, given to the nine best graduates of the XXXIII IPDN Cohort in 2026. He admitted that this achievement was a source of pride for his parents, and it also led him to be inaugurated by President Prabowo Subianto. “Once when I was having a casual chat, my mother spontaneously said she wanted me to be inaugurated directly by the president. I did not expect that casual chat would become a prayer that was heard and granted by Allah,” he concluded.