Typical Obligations of Lecturers in Indonesia





Indonesia. Source: Wikipedia


Lecturers’ obligations in Indonesia are regulated by the Ministry of Research and Higher Education. Through Undang-Undang No. 12 Tahun 12 tentang Perguruan Tinggi (Indonesian Law No.12/2012). Lecturers have obligations called Tri Dharma Perguruan Tinggi (Three Pillars of Higher Education).

The pillars are consist of teaching and education, research and development, community service, plus additional supporting activities. These are applied to all levels of academic careers. In general, those pillars can be described as below:

The first pillar is teaching and education. The components in this aspect are teaching in classes, supervising and examining students’ thesis (All tertiary students from diploma, bachelors, masters, to doctorate are expected to finish and orally defend their thesis), involving in curriculum development, mentoring activities, pursue further formal education or training sessions/workshops, serve as students’ adviser in academic (for example regarding their studies, Kuliah Kerja Nyata, Praktek Kerja Lapangan/ internship) and non-academic aspects (for example students union, sports, special interest, arts, and religious groups)

The second pillar is research and development. The component in this aspect is conducting research with many possible outputs, such as books, scientific articles, patents, and visual or performance outputs.

The third pillar is community service. In this area, lecturers are expected to be involved/serve in many community service projects and social events, serve as coordinator or member in social organizations, and serve in managerial levels in the university or governmental bodies.

The fourth pillar is supporting activities. This includes actively involved in many events, either initiated by the university (such as academic, students-related, or community-related events) or as an assignment from the government (such as SBMPTN, PPG, SM3T), involved in an inter-university relationship, involved in professional associations, and have the sport or socio-cultural achievements.

For professors, their additional obligations are to write books, make scientific articles, and disseminating their ideas.

All of those activities must simultaneously be conducted. All of them have a credit point and then accumulated to reach a certain credit every periodic, usually one semester.

Jabatan Fungsional Dosen (Academic Career Framework)

The minimum education requirement for a lecturer in Indonesia is master level. During their first two or three years in the university, they usually have a mentor mainly to familiarize themselves with the atmosphere or technical skills required in that department or faculty. At the same time, they have to enhance their skills regarding teaching, evaluating, students relationship, including management and organizing events.

General skills related to teaching and learning strategies, research procedures, or introduction to students’ activities are provided by a specific unit in the university or by Kopertis (coordinator agency for private universities in one region). Those training also as prerequisites to obtaining the first level in jabatan fungsional dosen (academic career framework)

The academic career for lecturers can be divided into many levels. Higher levels indicate their proficiency or experience as a lecturer. The academic career is started as tenaga pengajar (equivalent to lecturer), Asisten Ahli (assistant professor), then Lektor (assistant professor), Lektor Kepala (associate professor), and Professor.

To establish a position at a certain academic level, someone must gain certain credits (that accumulated from Tri Dharma Perguruan Tinggi activities). Higher levels require more credits. For example, a new lecturer must accumulate at least 150 credits to get Asisten Ahli. Then, to obtain Lektor they need to accumulate at least 200 credits. To get Lektor Kepala, they need to accumulate at least 400 credits. Lastly, to be called a professor, they need to accumulate at least 850 credits.

Notes:
#1 This Indonesian lecturer’s profile is typical lecturer under the Ministry of Research and Higher Education. Other lecturers under different governmental bodies may set their regulations. Some ministries own tertiary education providers, such as the Ministry of Religious Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Health, Indonesian National Police, and the Indonesian National Armed Forces.

#2 Based on their employer, lecturers in Indonesia can be divided into two groups: government-owned and private-owned. This strongly related to the university’ status, owned either by the government or by private. As a civil servant, a lecturer must also comply with employee affair regulations set by the government. Similarly, each private universities may set its regulations. Both private- and government-owned universities are liable to Ministry to Higher Education, while private universities are coordinated by Kopertis based on their regions.

#3 If your interest is solely in research, consider joining Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia (LIPI/ Indonesian Research Institute), formally established in 1967 but its history can be traced back to the 16th century. This is the first, the biggest, and the most prominent research institute in Indonesia.

References:
Perguruan Tinggi Kedinasan
Students activities in a university

(Thomas Soseco)


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