Master program at Bina Nusantara Univ.
I would like to share my experience at Bina Nusantara University for the MMSI Dua (Master's Degree Program) in cooperation with Curtin University of Australia during my current semester in Batch 16.
Payment for textbooks were collected well in advance by the University. After persistent request, photocopies of these copyrighted textbooks were distributed to us two weeks into the semester when several assignments had already been given in classes. Some students received it later. When insisting on the original textbooks, one textbook was made available for me for an "extra charge" of Rp 50,400. According to the University instructors and students, this is a common operating practice of Bina Nusantara University.
Class venue kept changing requiring inquiries from the secretariat's office prior to attending class every time. Unannounced sudden change of a teacher not listed in the outline handed out.
Requirements to sign one sided contracts after payment was made for the semester.
Poor arrangement and planning for facilities such as inadequate seating in class, no markers for the whiteboard, malfunctioning or non-availability of Infocus projectors for teachers, inadequate computer terminals for students, shutdown of air conditioning and the microphones 30 minutes prior to scheduled class ending, cyberaccess slowdowns/failures that are unknown to University support staff, unclean toilets that allow direct view of people relieving themselves when entrance door opens, etc.
Poor communication and administrative procedures form often causing unreliable services and false promises to teachers and students such as scheduling of the same teacher in two classes simultaneously, non-listing of registered students' names in attendance forms, repetitive and prolonged bureaucratic procedures for students due to poor organization.
No standardization of grading procedures or identification of score ranges (A=?, B=?, C=?), allowing excessively subjective, unclear, inconsistent and manipulative grading techniques, no procedures requiring return of exam papers by teachers or timely return of assignments to students for review, and unclear grading systems allowing grades like "good enough" for grading assignments from a teacher. The teacher only read my assignment on repeated inquiries over two months after the assignment was handed to him and refused to return the students' exam papers.
Resistance by management personnel to respond to such concerns and solutions from students including but limited to rude personal attacks (insults) and threats of dismissal by the University's Director (S2) Mr. Joseph Luhukay on Oct. 14, 2000 and refusal to talk about specific issues at hand. Interestingly, when invited to come urgently I was tricked as Ms. Arie of the secretariat office told me that Mr. Joseph had answers for the feedback provided to Ms. Anna Maria, the University Program Coordinator the same morning.
WASHY TOLANI
B.S. in Av. Tech, ATP