UI to use English as medium of instruction
UI to use English as medium of instruction
The University of Indonesia (UI) is planning to use English as a
medium of instruction beginning the 2005/06 academic year as part
of an effort to boost its competitiveness in the globalized
world, UI Rector Usman Chatib Warsa said.
"We feel we are not that competent in English now. So, to
boost our presence in the global context we will make English a
medium of instruction beginning in the 2005/6 academic year,"
Usman said during a ceremony to mark the university's 55th
anniversary in Depok on Sunday.
According to UI spokeswoman Henny Widyadingsih, the
preparations for the use of English as a medium of instruction
started in 2002 when a number of the university's schools signed
collaboration deals with several universities overseas for
teaching staff exchange programs.
The overseas universities involved include Singapore's Nanyang
University and several universities in Malaysia.
She also said that all UI lecturers would take English
proficiency tests, followed by English courses.
The subjects to be taught in English would be determined by
each school, with priority being given to subjects
related to international affairs, such as the international
communications course offered by the School of Communications.
The program would start to be rolled out in early 2006, the
second semester of the 2005/6 academic year.
Usman also said the UI was planning to increase the salaries
and allowances offered to lecturers and staff to improve overall
quality of service.
"We are planning to increase staff salaries and provide more
incentives for lecturers. Starting 2006, the university will
strive to pay lecturers and professors salaries ranging from Rp 5
million to around Rp 10 million," he said.
The current salaries offered to lecturers and professors at UI
range between Rp 2 million and Rp 3 million.
It is hoped that the planned salary and allowances increase
will improve the attitudes and morale of staff and lecturers so
that they will jettison the old, passive civil service style and
become dynamic and active educational service providers, Usman said.
To ensure the success of the plan, the university had prepared
a funding mechanism as part of its budget.
"One-third of the university's budget comes from student
tuition fees, one third from research and the remaining one-third
from the government subsidy," he said.
"However, the government, which is supposed to provide one-
third of our budget, is only actually paying around one fifth of
what we need. To cover the shortfall, we look for extra money by
conducting research and building cooperation with the private
sector."
According to Usman, high tax on donations hinders the private
sectors from donating money to the university and other state-
backed educational institutes.
"The high rate of tax makes them reluctant to donate to the
university. Universities abroad rarely face this kind of
problem," he said.
Usman said UI and other state universities were holding
discussions with the Ministry of Finance with a view to finding a
solution to the problem.
"We are also proposing the setting up of a research grant
scheme as part of the effort to improve the competitiveness of
our researchers," said Usman. (001)