Yogyakarta, February 4, 2025 – Sekolah Vokasi, Universitas Gadjah Mada (SV UGM) held a Vocational Education Development Dialogue with the theme Strategic Collaboration Towards Indonesia Emas 2045. The event was attended by the Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology, Prof. Stella Christie, Ph.D., along with the leaders of SV UGM. The dialogue aimed to strengthen synergy between vocational higher education and the workforce to produce graduates with global competitiveness.
The event, held at the Ballroom of the Teaching Industry Learning Center (TILC) SV UGM, was opened with a speech by the Dean of the Sekolah Vokasi UGM, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Ir. Agus Maryono, IPM., ASEAN Eng.. In his speech, he expressed his hope that this dialogue would serve as a concrete step in the development of vocational higher education in Indonesia.
“Thank you for your time. Today, we have a very special guest, the Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology, Prof. Stella Christie, Ph.D. We hope that through this dialogue, we can find the best strategies for developing vocational education in Indonesia. I also hope that this event can foster all of our enthusiasm to continue innovating,” said Prof. Agus Maryono.
Dialogue and Issues on Vocational Education
The event continued with an interactive dialogue session moderated by Prof. Agus Maryono. One of the main issues discussed was the abolition of the Directorate General of Vocational Higher Education, which has raised concerns among vocational higher education institutions regarding the sustainability of vocational development in the future.
In response, Prof. Stella Christie, Ph.D., emphasized that even without a dedicated directorate, vocational education remains an important component of the national development strategy.
“The President has outlined four key priorities for the government: job creation, productivity enhancement, energy and food security, and investment breakthroughs. All four are closely linked to vocational education. We at the Ministry continue to provide full support, such as through the Skema Mitras DUDI program, whose results have proven to be very effective,” explained Prof. Stella.
Furthermore, she also stressed that vocational education should no longer be viewed as a second-choice option.
“We aim to eliminate the stigma that vocational education is a second-class choice. In fact, vocational education plays a strategic role in producing high-quality workforce prepared to enter the industry,” she added.
Visit to the Center of Excellence
In addition to attending the dialogue, the Deputy Minister also had the opportunity to visit the Center of Excellence located in the TILC SV UGM building. During her visit, she inspected various state-of-the-art facilities supporting industry-based vocational learning, including innovation laboratories, applied research centers, and collaboration programs within the business and industrial sector (DUDI).
Prof. Stella Christie expressed her appreciation for the steps taken by SV UGM in creating an innovative vocational education ecosystem that is relevant to industry needs.
“I highly appreciate the facilities available at this Center of Excellence. The collaboration between the academic and industrial sectors, as implemented by SV UGM, is a concrete example of how vocational education can continue to evolve and have a significant impact on the development of Indonesia’s human resources,” she stated.
The dialogue concluded with an interactive question-and-answer session between participants and the Deputy Minister, followed by the handover of a souvenir from Sekolah Vokasi UGM to Prof. Stella Christie, Ph.D.
Through this agenda, it is expected that collaboration between vocational higher education, the industrial sector, and the government will become stronger, thereby enhancing Indonesia’s human resource competencies in addressing global challenges toward achieving Indonesia Emas 2045 (Golden Indonesia 2045)
Author: Marwah Putri Nahampun
Editor: Public Relations Sekolah Vokasi UGM