Don't Wait Until Graduation to Seek Work Experience!
One of the greatest ironies in higher education today is that many graduates only begin preparing for their careers after their graduation ceremony. In reality, when entering the recruitment process, companies do not just ask, “What is your degree?” but also, “What experience do you have?”
In a world of work transformed by digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence (AI), experience has become a highly valuable new currency. An academic degree remains important, but it is no longer sufficient to win the competition. The industry now needs talent who are able to work, adapt, collaborate, and solve real problems from the first day they join.
For this reason, I view the presence of the MagangHub Programme Batch 1, Phase II, initiated by the Ministry of Manpower, as a strategic step that deserves appreciation. This programme shows that the government is increasingly serious about building a bridge between the worlds of education and work through practice-based learning experiences.
The MagangHub Programme is not merely about providing internship placements. More than that, it offers a space for graduates to understand professional work culture, improve competencies according to industry needs, and obtain the opportunity to pursue competency certification from the National Professional Certification Board (BNSP) after completing the internship. This is a highly relevant added value for the current job market.
I believe that internship experience has a far greater impact than simply filling a line on a curriculum vitae. Internships shape a professional mindset, train communication, build discipline, strengthen teamwork abilities, and teach how theories learned in lectures are applied in the real world. Companies today are no longer looking for candidates who can only answer exam questions. They seek individuals who can adapt to change, understand technology, show initiative, and provide solutions to various business challenges.
This is why students must not wait until graduation to start building their careers. Preparation should begin from the early semesters through various experiences that can enrich their competencies. At Universitas Nusa Mandiri (UNM), as a Digital Business Campus, we believe that higher education must produce graduates who are ready to work, not just ready to graduate. Therefore, career development is not placed as an additional service but as an integral part of the educational process.
Through the Nusa Mandiri Career Center (NCC), we continuously present various programmes to support student readiness, including the Internship Experience Programme (IEP), competency training, professional certification, campus hiring, career seminars, collaborative projects, and CV and interview preparation. Our role as a career centre is not just to provide job vacancy information but to become a partner for students in designing their career journeys from the time they are still in lectures.
I believe the success of creating superior human resources cannot be borne by one party alone. The government, higher education institutions, and the business world must walk in step. The MagangHub Programme is a concrete example of how such synergy can provide broad benefits, both for participants, companies, and national workforce development.
In the digital age, it is not those who study the longest who will excel, but those who are most prepared to learn, adapt, and prove their competence through real experience.