DPR Reveals Causes Behind Thousands of Prospective Students Withdrawing from Universities

Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives (DPR) Commission X, Lalu Hadrian Irfani, has stated that the withdrawal of thousands of prospective university students was caused by various factors, including the high cost of single tuition fees (UKT). He urged the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology to increase scholarship opportunities for students wishing to continue their studies at university. “Please expand the affirmation for underprivileged prospective students to accommodate all,” Lalu said at the DPR complex in Jakarta on Tuesday, 30 June 2026.

Lalu also noted that not all campuses set expensive UKT rates. He gave the example of Mataram University in West Nusa Tenggara, where the lowest fee is IDR 500,000 per semester. He therefore appealed to prospective students not to rush into withdrawing. “I appeal to those who have not yet registered, and those who have been accepted at state universities, to register first; the UKT amount will be determined later,” he said.

Beyond financial issues, Lalu revealed that another cause for withdrawals was acceptance into service academies, including the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) and the Indonesian National Police (Polri). “Another reason is because they were accepted at a campus that was not their first choice, so they chose another university,” added the National Awakening Party (PKB) politician.

In a separate statement, the Chairman of the National Selection for State Universities (SNPMB), Eduart Wolok, denied that 60,000 prospective students had withdrawn. He clarified that this figure was an accumulation from all admission pathways. Eduart explained that withdrawals occur when students are accepted into their second-choice study programme via the National Selection Based on Achievement (SNBP) pathway and subsequently opt for a private university. Another scenario involves students passing their third choice in the National Selection Based on Test (SNBT) and deciding not to enrol. Regarding financial concerns, he noted that UKT for the SNBP pathway is adjusted based on parental income data. “So it is not burdensome,” Eduart said. He also explained that the allocation for the KIP Kuliah scholarship is currently 55 percent for private universities and 45 percent for state universities.