Universitas Kristen Duta Wacana (UKDW) Yogyakarta in collaboration with Universitas Pembangunan Nasional (UPN) Veteran Jakarta conducted an event called Info Session and Alumni Sharing “Study in Germany” on Wednesday, March 3, 2021. This event was part of KUI Edu Fair 2021 – a national agenda of KUI Indonesia (Indonesia International Office Association).
Participants in this event were students, lecturers, staff, as well as alumni who came from universities all around Indonesia. Around 143 people joined the event through Zoom platform. In addition, this session was also streamed online through UKDW’s official Youtube Channel UKDW Yogyakarta. There were two sessions in this event: the first session was Info Session on Study Opportunity and Scholarship with Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) and the second session was Alumni Sharing “Studying and Living in Germany).
Invited as the speaker in the first session was Ms. Muji Rahayu, Program Officer of DAAD, while Dr. Sri Lestari Wahyuningrum from UPN Veteran Jakarta served as the moderator. This session brought the topic of study opportunity and scholarship, where participants could learn about the education system in Germany and various scholarship opportunities offered by DAAD for international students to pursue their education in Germany.
“Basically, there are three types of higher education institutions in Germany: university, university of applied sciences, and college of art and music,” Muji said. While universities are in particular more research-oriented and offer a wide range of academic disciplines that focus on theoretical approaches, universities of applied science focus on the application of research results and practical knowledge, such as in engineering and other technical disciplines and business-related studies. Meanwhile, colleges of arts and music offer studies for artistic careers, for example in design, architecture, photography, performing arts, music, etc.
Furthermore, Muji explained that the government of Germany offers various scholarships for studying in Germany, one of them is through DAAD. The number of students receiving DAAD scholarships is increasing each year. Indonesia is among the top 25 countries by the number of students sent to study in Germany.
In the alumni sharing session, three speakers were invited: Dr. Bambang Susanto from UPN Veteran Jakarta, Dr. Ing. Gregorius Sri Wuryanto from UKDW, and Dr. Phil. Shiskha Prabawaningtyas from Universitas Paramadina. The session was moderated by Dr. Phil. Lucia Dwi Krisnawati, the Director of the Office of Partnerships and Public Relations of UKDW and lecturer at the Faculty of Information Technology.
Dr. Gregorius Sri Wuryanto shared his experience when studying in Germany. He received a scholarship from DAAD to pursue his doctoral degree in 2010-2014. He said that a clear and focused research topic was the key to completing the study successfully. When finding a research supervisor, it is important to find a match with the research interest of the prospective professors.
Meanwhile, Dr. Phil. Shiskha Prabawaningtyas said that the education system standard in Germany is rigid so that we need to be precise and thorough when preparing the required documents. She also pointed out that learning German would be necessary when deciding to study in Germany. At least we should be able to speak in German for survival, she said.
Another important thing is for Indonesian students to self-report to the Indonesian Embassy or the Consulate General upon arrival in Germany, explained Dr. Bambang Susanto who served as the Consul General of the Republic of Indonesia in Hamburg in 2018 – 2020. This is important so that the Indonesian government can offer maximal protection and assistance to Indonesia’s citizens in Germany. Important information can also be disseminated effectively. For instance, the consulate general can provide information about the safe areas or locations for accommodation.
Hopefully, this event can encourage participants who are interested to study in Germany and help them to get useful information in preparing their scholarship application, university enrollment, as well as social and cultural aspects to live in Germany.
So, get ready to follow your dream and embark on the extraordinary educational journey ahead! Alles Gute!