Bakom: 307 Students Become First Cohort at SMA Unggul Garuda Baru
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Government Communication Agency (Bakom) announced that 307 high-achieving students have passed the selection process to commence the new academic year at SMA Unggul Garuda Baru, located across four regions.
Acting Deputy for Partnership and Media Relations at Bakom, Kurnia Ramadhana, stated that the government is currently constructing four Unggul Garuda Baru High Schools in East Belitung (Bangka Belitung), South Central Timor (East Nusa Tenggara), South Konawe (Southeast Sulawesi), and Bulungan (North Kalimantan).
“Ultimately, 307 of the best students were declared successful as the first cohort of Sekolah Unggul Garuda Baru for the 2026-2027 academic year,” Kurnia said at the Bakom building in Jakarta on Wednesday.
According to the established schedule, student mobilisation to the school locations will take place from 16 to 19 July 2026, with formal teaching and learning activities officially commencing on 20 July 2026.
“Specifically for Sekolah Unggul Garuda in Bulungan, students will undergo their first semester at Sekolah Unggul Garuda in South Konawe while awaiting the completion of construction at the definitive site,” Kurnia explained.
Regarding the Sekolah Unggul Garuda Transformasi programme, it has already begun in 2025 through 12 pioneer schools spread from Aceh to Southwest Papua.
Kurnia noted that in 2026, the government has designated 30 schools to join the SMA Unggul Garuda Transformasi programme, bringing the current total to 42 schools.
“The government is targeting 80 schools to become SMA Unggul Garuda Transformasi by 2029,” he said.
SMA Unggul Garuda Baru is built and managed from the ground up by the government in areas where access to high-quality educational facilities is still minimal.
Meanwhile, SMA Unggul Garuda Transformasi refers to selected existing high schools that are then developed to implement enrichment programme standards set by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology, with the goal of enabling students to continue their education at top universities.
The enrichment provided includes strengthening learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), collaborative research mentoring, training in writing recommendation letters, and facilitating student applications to the world’s best universities.
Kurnia explained that there has been a 150 percent increase in students accepted into the top 100 universities from the 12 schools that have already become SMA Unggul Garuda Transformasi.
According to records from the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology, only 132 students were accepted into the top 100 universities in 2025. That number rose to 330 students in 2026, a year after the schools were selected and developed as SMA Unggul Garuda Transformasi.
“Both are long-term government investments in preparing an excellent, competitive Indonesian generation ready to lead the nation towards a better future,” Kurnia concluded.