ITB offers new entry test for 45 million

Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung, West Java

In a bid to free itself from state subsidies, the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) will allow applicants to pay Rp 45 million (about US$5,000) and take a special test to enter the institute, where competition for places is among the country's toughest.

ITB deputy rector for academic and student affairs Adang Surahman said on Wednesday that ITB hoped to raise Rp 10 billion to Rp 12 billion through the new entrance test this year.

"We will accept 300 students through the special selection process, in addition to around 2,000 students who pass the New Students Entry Selection (SPMB)," Adang told a media briefing.

He gave an assurance that despite its Rp 45 million cost, the special test would be of similar difficulty as the nationwide SPMB.

Students would neither receive any special treatment nor facilities from the campus.

But those who paid Rp 45 million to take the new test, he said, would be given psychometric and skills tests, apart from the SPMB mandatory test.

This selection would ensure students entered faculties that best suited their interests, talents and capabilities, he explained.

They must also pay a higher annual tuition fee of Rp 4 million to Rp 5 million. Normally the fee ranges from Rp 3.4 million to Rp 4 million, depending on the student's faculty.

Senior high school graduates take the nationwide SPMB test to enroll in state-owned universities or institutes. Apart from offering cheaper tuition, state universities are often more reputable than private ones.

Adang said that students who failed ITB's special selection process could try their luck through the SPMB.

He added the special selection process would also fill places that were left vacant every year by students who had passed the SPMB but could not afford ITB's tuition fees.

Every year, around 7 percent of the 2,000 ITB entrants fail to register themselves for a variety of reasons, including financial, he said.

ITB's move to tap more revenue from students is part of its attempt to become financially independent from the government.

The government plans to phase out subsidy spending across the universities, forcing many to seek ways of raising their own money. Universities have until 2005 to raise adequate funds for themselves.

Founded in 1920, and the place where Indonesia's first president Soekarno graduated, ITB needs around Rp 240 billion to cover its annual operating costs.

At present the institute receives Rp 70 billion in subsidy from the state. It obtains another Rp 100 billion through third- party cooperation and Rp 20 billion from student tuition fees.