KBRI Beijing Seeks to Increase Number of Indonesian Students Studying STEM in Hunan
Changsha — Indonesia’s Ambassador to China and Mongolia, Djauhari Oratmangun, has urged greater opportunities for Indonesian students to study science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in Hunan Province, particularly at Central South University (CSU).
“I am pleased to have met and spoken directly with representatives from Central South University, as CSU has an excellent reputation, including in metallurgical engineering, advanced materials, transportation, and medicine,” said Djauhari in Changsha, Hunan, on Monday, 9 March.
Ambassador Djauhari made these remarks while meeting with An Shi, Chairman of CSU’s University Board, during an official working visit to Changsha.
CSU is a government-funded affiliated university established in 2020 through the merger of three higher education institutions: Hainan Medical University (HMU), Changsha Railway University (CRU), and Central South University of Technology (CSUT).
“The programmes offered by CSU are also closely aligned with human resource development in Indonesia and consistent with Indonesia’s current development priorities, particularly in downstream industrialisation, including sending young government officials in STEM fields to study at CSU,” he added.
He assessed that there is considerable potential to expand cooperation between CSU and Indonesia going forward, especially given the growing trend of Indonesian students studying in China.
“Currently, 20,000 Indonesian students are studying in China. I am confident that the number of Indonesian students at CSU will also increase in the future, particularly as the government currently requires enhanced talent in STEM fields,” Ambassador Djauhari stated.
“Our university excels in the development and utilisation of mineral resources and metallurgical technology, and has state-of-the-art research systems and rail transportation facilities, as well as being one of the origins of modern medicine in China, through Xiangya School of Medicine,” said An Shi.
An Shi explained that in the Soft Science Ranking 2025, CSU’s mining programme ranked first globally, metallurgy ranked second, and mechanical engineering also ranked among the top programmes.
At the national level, programmes such as mineral processing, metallurgy, mining engineering and materials science are ranked A+ or in the top ten nationally.
“In Stanford University’s list of the world’s most influential scientists, which selects the top two per cent of scientists globally, there are 534 faculty members from CSU. This places the university seventh in mainland China. This also demonstrates that the quality of the university’s teaching staff is at a very high level,” An Shi explained.
“I hope to gain substantial knowledge whilst studying at CSU, so that we can continue to progress further in technology and innovation, and upon returning to Indonesia, I can contribute more,” said Apriansyah in fluent Mandarin.
Apriansyah completed his diploma education in China in Guangxi Province. He then continued with undergraduate studies in Beijing and postgraduate studies in Changsha.
“At the same time, I also hope to serve as a bridge between Indonesia and China, so I hope we can collaborate further in the future,” he said.
Indonesia is known to be Hunan’s second-largest trading partner in Southeast Asia. The value of trade between Indonesia and Hunan reached 3.23 billion US dollars in 2025.
The main driver of trade growth is the export of Hunan’s “three new” products to Indonesia, comprising electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries and photovoltaic products (solar panels).
In the first eleven months of 2025, exports of these products from Hunan to Indonesia surged by 724 per cent.