Surabaya (ANTARA) – Speaking at a graduation ceremony at Muhammadiyah University Surabaya on Saturday, Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture, Muhadjir Effendy, asked graduates to bring about a mental revolution.
“Now there is a drastic change that we must adapt quickly (to). It takes creativity to be able to respond quickly in new situations and it must be owned by all of you to enter the world of work during this time,” Effendy said.
According to the minister, the graduates will become core players in Indonesia’s golden era. Thus, he emphasized that all university graduates must help bring about a mental revolution.
“There are three values of Pancasila, according to the President’s direction: the integrity of the nation’s young people that must be nurtured, hardworking work ethic, and the spirit of mutual cooperation,” he said.
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Meanwhile, the Rector of the Muhammadiyah University Surabaya, Sukadino, said that the graduation ceremony was the largest physical graduation held.
Around 1,456 graduates have been equipped with soft skills and the ability to adapt to the demands of the world of work.
“Several graduates have also successfully graduated by publishing their work or research in international or national journals. So, they can be converted to the equivalent of six credits of thesis,” he said.
This conversion option is part of the Independent Campus program of the Ministry of Education and Culture. In fact, it has been implemented for the past four years.
“Hopefully there will be more students who can publish their research. We hope the number can increase to 500 percent. This program is also easier than (publishing a) thesis, which requires many steps,” he said.
However, there are several challenges, including promoting a culture of publishing research among students since they are more familiar with the thesis process, Sukadino said.
“That is why we have research methodology courses and there are also exhibitions of student works and innovations as motivation for research publications,” he said.
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