UMY Again Hosts Mudik Bareng for Students

UNIVERSITAS Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (UMY) has again organised Mudik Bareng, the free group homecoming transport for students. The event was held on Saturday, 7 March, and was attended by 335 students and 33 accompanying staff. The programme enters its second year; last year’s Mudik Bareng involved 116 participants. ‘Participants were selected after registration and a competitive process involving 675 applicants,’ said Dyah Mutiarin, Vice Rector for Resource Affairs at UMY, on Saturday (7/3). The operation involved 13 vehicles: 6 big buses, 3 medium buses, 3 Hiace vans and 1 Innova. The free Mudik programme, she said, is a form of campus care for students who study away from home, enabling them to return to their hometowns safely and comfortably ahead of Eid al-Fitr. ‘We hope this Mudik Bareng can continue to be held every year so that more students can benefit,’ she added. She also reminded students to stay healthy during the journey and to use the Lebaran holiday to reunite with their families. The Mudik programme is organised by UMY with the support and partnership of BMT UMY, and transport cooperation with Big Bird, which provides the bus fleet for participants. The travel routes cover several Indonesian regions, including Brebes, Purwokerto, Pemalang, Blora, Cimahi, Surabaya, Subang, Bekasi, Cilegon, Jakarta, Lampung and Palembang. One participant, Rifqi Alvian, a 2022 cohort student of the Department of Communications Studies from Metro, Lampung, said he felt very helped by the programme. ‘As a student living away from home, receiving free mudik is truly a privilege,’ he said. According to Rifqi, the journey from Yogyakarta to Lampung typically incurs significant costs when using public transport, so the campus Mudik Bareng facility is very helpful for students like him. ‘Usually public transport fares are quite expensive. Now that UMY’s mudik is provided for free, it’s a huge saving. It’s like travelling with zero rupiah budget,’ he added. Through UMY’s Mudik Bareng 2026, the university hopes students can celebrate Eid al-Fitr with their families in their hometowns and return to Yogyakarta with renewed enthusiasm to continue their studies.