Guaranteeing that all pupils can attend school, Kemendikdasmen: SPMB is not a selection

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Education, Basic and Secondary Education (Kemendikdasmen) has emphasised that the System for New Student Admissions (SPMB) is not an arena to screen or filter prospective pupils, ensuring that applicants will have the same opportunity to attend school. Gogot Suharwoto, the Director-General for Early Childhood Education, Basic Education, and Non-Formal and Informal Education at Kemendikdasmen, affirmed that all children who apply to SPMB will still secure a place, whether in state or private schools.

‘SPMB is a system for admitting new pupils, not a selection,’ Gogot said during the signing of the Friendly SPMB Commitment at Plaza Insan Berprestasi, Building A, Kemendikdasmen, Jakarta, on Thursday. Therefore, he said the government through Kemendikdasmen has prepared four admission channels for SPMB 2026, namely domicile, achievement, affirmation, and mutation. ‘Each channel is to accommodate all prospective pupils according to their respective categories,’ he added.

The key to SPMB, he said, lies in the planning stage, so he has asked local governments to calculate in detail the number of school-age children and the capacity in their areas. In relation to this process, he noted that Balai Penjaminan Mutu Pendidikan (BPMP) across Indonesia has been involved to assist local governments in drawing up these plans.

‘If we plan well, by accurately counting the number of children around schools and their capacity, then all children can be accommodated,’ he said. He also reminded local governments to direct pupils who are not accepted through the selection to nearby government schools within their school intake region, private schools, and/or schools operated by other ministries that still have capacity. This is as stipulated in Article 50 of Permendikdasmen Regulation Number 3 of 2025 on the System for New Student Admissions. ‘The point of SPMB is that every child who applies will get a place,’ Gogot asserted.