Parents feel the bite of high education costs

The Jakarta Post Yogyakarta/Semarang

Any parent would be proud to see their child graduate. But Sudibyo is far from happy. When his eldest son, Eko Widi, graduates from senior high school this year, Sudibyo will need lots of money since Eko has been accepted for a communications study program at Atma Jaya University in Yogyakarta.

"I don't know how will I pay the entrance fee, which is almost Rp 10 million (US$1,052), not to mention the other fees," 49-year-old Sudibyo told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

That amount of money is a lot to the father of three, especially since he is paying for two other children's education. However, he has already borrowed Rp 5 million for his eldest son's higher education and will manage to borrow the rest.

"What else can I do? I have to borrow money to pay for my child's schooling. If he does not register now, in the first enrollment period, it will cost much more in the second or third enrollment period," Sudibyo said.

When asked why his son did not go to a state university like Gadjah Mada University (UGM), he replied that state and private universities were both expensive.

"I heard last year that it cost tens millions of rupiah to enter UGM, even hundreds of millions. Where could I get that sort of money from? Even to pay Rp 10 million I have to borrow money here and there," he said.

Santoso is facing the same problem. His youngest son, Setiawan, 19, will enter university this year.

When his son was accepted at the School of Economics at a reputable private university in Yogyakarta, he had already paid Rp 12 million. "That was only a donation. There are other fees," said the trader at a traditional market.

University education in Yogyakarta, known as the university city, is expensive. Last year, each student accepted at UGM, for instance, reportedly paid between Rp 5 million and tens millions of rupiah for the improvement of academic quality.

In addition, each student pays a tuition fee of about Rp 500,000 per semester as well as fees for each subject unit taken per semester. One unit costs Rp 60,000 to Rp 75,000.

High costs are also apparent at the basic education level, where parents have to dig deeper into their pockets, paying millions of rupiah, to get enroll children at popular elementary schools.

At SDN Ungaran elementary school in Kota Baru, for instance, parents were required to pay a "donation" of at least Rp 3 million for each child last year.

"The amount of the donation is determined by the parents themselves. But if some want to contribute more we'll accept it. If someone wants to contribute Rp 25 million, we won't reject it," said Dewi Partini, a teacher.

In Central Java, universities solicit prospective students by visiting senior high schools, distributing brochures that also provide information on the amount required per study program.

Essy Kakisina, a promotion and academic skill guidance staffer at Satya Wacana Christian University (UKSW) in Salatiga, said the university used such a method since it had to compete with 180 or so universities in the province.

"We promote not only in Central Java, but also in Sumatra, such as in Palembang and Padang," Essy said.

Six universities actively promoted themselves this week in Semarang, organized by Idea Communication.

"We can be proud of our university's reputation. But that's not enough for us. UKSW should be able to explain to students (about our programs). With so many universities, students might get confused," Essy said.

Syifa', a lecturer at IAIN Walisongo Semarang, was involved in promoting the institute's three-year diploma program on sharia banking.

"We want people to know that IAIN provides not only religious study programs, but also banking programs," Syifa said.

Apart from promoting their study programs, universities also provide information on their fees.

For instance, Soegijapranata Catholic University sets its education development fee at Rp 12.5 million for its food technology study program, Rp 6 million for civil engineering and Rp 4 million for law. While UKSW sets its education "donation" at Rp 9 million for its engineering program and Rp 4 million for its social and political sciences program.