Depok-The ability to put the knowledge gained in college into the work field in the industrial world is something that is highly expected from graduates of higher education. For this reason, the existence of the Merdeka Belajar Kampus Merdeka (MBKM) program from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia is one of the important strategies that encourage students to master various sciences and enrich competencies to enter the industrial world. In an effort to prepare students to be ready to enter the industrial market, the Universitas Indonesia Vocational Education Program (UI Vocational) together with MarkPlus, Inc.—a marketing consulting company in Indonesia—held the MarkPlus Goes to Campus (MGTC) event.
This event consists of a series of talk shows between higher education institutions as a forum for sharing inspiration in the application of Creativity, Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Leadership (CIEL). In organizing the event last Saturday (9/4), MGTC was guided by the CEO of MarkPlus Inc., Jacky Mussry, with the Director of the UI Vocational Education Program, Padang Wicaksono, S.E., Ph.D., and the Rector of Universitas Darma Persada, Dr. Tri Mardjoko, S.E., M.A.
According to Jacky, universities have an important role in improving the quality of graduates. “Collaboration between academics and practitioners is very much needed. In addition, universities also need to change their focus to become customer-centric, namely students, so that universities can facilitate them optimally,” he said.
(Photo: Discussion between Jacky Mussry and Padang Wicaksono on the implementation of vocational education in Indonesia)
As one of the vocational higher education institutions in Indonesia, UI Vocational supports various programs to increase student competence to create competitive graduates. On that occasion, UI Vocational shared experiences on how to implement CIEL in campus activities, both in the fields of teaching, research, and community service.
Padang said that the implementation of a practice-based curriculum has become the focus of UI Vocational. Support in the form of problem-based learning methods has also been maximized. “Various supporting facilities, such as laboratories, become teaching factories that also provide real experiences for students to apply theoretical learning in the classroom in the form of practice,” Padang explained.
The implementation of CIEL by UI Vocational also produces innovative products as a form of implementing the practice of lecturers and students. Some of these innovation products include VokHumFest, E-Taxaction NG, and Vocation Wellness Center. VokHumFest (Vokasi Humas Festival) is a community service program to help Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the fields of products, services, technology, and local/community broadcasting institutions throughout Greater Jakarta by creating an Integrated Marketing Communication program. This program aims to help MSMEs promote and create branding.
(Photo: Padang introduces the implementation of practice-focused vocational education at the Universitas Indonesia)
The E-Taxaction New Generation (E-Taxaction NG) is a digital application that provides tax consultation features and free tax study rooms for the public, especially MSMEs actors. This innovation is an effort to link and match between the outputs of Vocational Higher Education and the needs of MSMEs, the business world, and industry. Users can choose the topic they want to learn, for example about Tax Reporting and can get assistance in filling out the Annual Income Tax Return (SPT) for Personal Income Tax.
In addition to innovations in the fields of communication and taxation, UI Vocational also produces innovative products in the health sector. Through the Vocation Wellness Center, UI Vocational has opened a health service center that focuses on physiotherapy and occupational therapy. This service is intended for UI residents and the general public. The health services provided include speech therapy, acupuncture, sensory integration, baby massage, snoezelen/relaxation therapy, and other therapeutic services.
UI Vocational innovation products are expected to have a positive impact on the wider community, especially as an effort to create UI as an entrepreneurial university. “Support for the entrepreneurial university program is also manifested by making the Entrepreneurship course a compulsory subject in all Vocational study programs. It is done to produce UI Vocational graduates who can become entrepreneurs and create jobs for many people,” said Padang.
