Rising Tuition Fees: Don't Let Public University Students Pay with Illegal Loans

Students participating in a protest rally marking National Education Day in front of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology (Kemdiktisaintek) building in Central Jakarta on Monday (4 May 2026) spotlighted disparities in education budgets and the high cost of tuition at state universities (PTN). One of the protesters, Daffa (20), criticised the injustice in budget allocation between PTN and civil service academies. He also highlighted the burden of tuition fees under the Single Tuition Fee (UKT) system, which he said is continuously increasing. “Don’t let the budget be exhausted only on civil service academies, while PTN students have to pay UKT using illegal online loans,” Daffa told Kompas.com at the site on Monday. “We feel there is budget discrimination. For us at PTN, UKT keeps rising,” Daffa said. Meanwhile, another student, Clarisa (21), assessed that the Single Tuition Fee (UKT) system has not yet addressed issues of inequality in access to higher education in Indonesia. According to her, higher education is still not fully accessible to middle- and lower-class communities. “Not everyone can access higher education. In this day and age, it should be increasingly open, but in reality today, higher education remains a luxury item. It is still difficult to reach for middle- and lower-class communities,” Clarisa said at the protest site. “Even at various state universities, many programmes have independent entry fees, with upfront payments reaching Rp 50 million,” Clarisa added. Limitations in education budgets and various efficiency policies have made access to higher education increasingly difficult for certain segments of society. Previously reported, students from various campuses and organisations held a protest rally in front of the Kemdiktisaintek building in Gelora, Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, on Monday (4 May 2026). 1. Revocation of MBG funding from the education budget and a complete evaluation of that programme.