JP/5/COLLEGE

JP/5/COLLEGE

Private colleges in Yogyakarta on the brink of collapse

Slamet Susanto
The Jakarta Post/Yogyakarta

Hundreds of private higher learning institutions in Yogyakarta,
considered by many as the nation's education center, are on the
brink of collapse due to a lack of students.

The shortage of students has reduced revenues at the
institutions, and they are having difficulties covering
operational costs. Some of them have even suffered losses and it
is predicted that around 40 percent could close down in two to
three years, according to a senior educator.

The head of Yogyakarta's Private Institute Association,
Sugiyanto, said that the shortage of students was due, in part,
to the fact that the more prestigious Gadjah Mada University had
expanded its diploma programs, and the status of the state-run
Teacher's College (IKIP) had been changed to that of a
university.

In previous years, candidates who failed the state university
entrance exams would immediately seek places in the private
institutes. "But, now, they prefer to enroll in the UGM
extension/vocational programs, so the allotment for private
colleges has decreased," he said.

He also added that parents were now afraid to send their
children to Yogyakarta to study, because of reports on rampant
drug abuse and fornication among the students in that city.

"A survey once showed that 40 percent of parents preferred not
to send their children to Yogyakarta because they were afraid
their children would become involved in sex and drugs," said
Sugiyanto, who is also a rector at the Ahmad Dahlan University
(UAD).

He said that almost all private institutes grouped in the
association were having difficulties bringing in new students.
Only UAD and the Yogyakarta Muhammadiyah University (UMY) made it
to 100 percent of their quotas last year.

The main reason for this trend is that the private institutes
depend entirely on student fees. If student numbers continue to
dwindle, they would surely have problems covering their costs.

"What happens now is natural selection. Only renowned and
prominent private institutes will be able to continue to exist.
Around 40 percent of the private institutes in Yogyakarta could
collapse within the next few years," he predicted.

A staff member at the Proklamasi University's (UNPROK)
registrar's office, Mawaruddin, said from the initial allotment
for 800 new students in its five departments and seven study
programs, only 15 percent had been filled. Only 90 students were
registered as of Aug. 26, the deadline for the third phase of the
registration.

"No more than 15 students have been registered at the
mechanical engineering department, which has a capacity of 80
students, and this decline is similar in the rest of the
departments and study programs," Mawaruddin told The Jakarta
Post.

The decline in student enrollment, he said, had been felt
since 2002. "Our income is very small and not enough to cover
operational costs. We have difficulties even paying our employees
now. It was a reverse situation before 2002. Before 2002, the
institute had always had to turn away students," he said.

Wangsa Manggala University (Unwama) spokesman Manasyir
concurred, saying that less than 75 percent of the 1,000 seats
available had been filled by new students. While only 10 students
from the quota of 100 had enrolled in the agribusiness school
thus far. "We are facing difficulties right now without being
supported by the university foundation," he said.