Education and training exhibitions currently on
Education and training exhibitions currently on
JAKARTA (JP): More than 400 higher education and training
institutions are currently taking part in an "Education and
Training Expo" at the Jakarta Convention Center.
The exhibition opened yesterday and will run until Monday.
The expo involves both local and foreign institutions,
including the state-owned Bandung Institute of Technology,
Cendrawasih University (Jayapura) and the Open University
(Jakarta), as well as private colleges and academies such as the
Indonesian Higher Institution of Arts in Denpasar, Sahid
University, Bung Hatta University and the Trisakti Academy of
Graphics Technology.
Foreign institutions participating in the expo, which was
opened yesterday by Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare
Azwar Anas, include the Swiss Hotel Management School, Lasalle
International Fashion School, the British Council, the Japan
Foundation, the Erasmus Language Center, the James Boswell
Institute and the Goethe Institute.
The exhibition was full of uniformed high-school students
yesterday. Many of them came in groups led by their teachers.
State universities -- once the dream of every high-school
student -- have lately encountered increasing competition from
private institutions, academies and short-time courses scattered
across the country.
Vocational courses have also become increasingly popular among
high-school graduates, particularly since Minister of Education
and Culture Wardiman Djojonegoro started promoting the "link and
match" concept; the matching of high-school graduates with the
demands of industry.
PT Star Motors Indonesia, the main distributor of Mercedes-
Benz in Indonesia, had a stand at the expo to promote its
currently little-known training courses.
Manager of the company's Human Resources Education and
Training Division Cahyadi Hendrarko said the programs, lasting
between three months and two years, only accepted 20 students at
a time.
"We accept students both from general high schools (SMA) and
technical high schools (STM)... After graduating, they may work
for other companies or start their own business, but we offer
jobs at our company to the best students," he said.
Assistant Manager of the company's Central Service Department,
Helmut Zeitlhofer, said the course consisted of 80 percent
practice and 20 percent theory and covered a wide range of basic
automotive, mechanical and problem-solving skills.
Minister of Education and Culture Wardiman Djojonegoro has
lately been encouraging such vocational courses under the slogan
"link and match". (pwn)