KOMPAS.com – For a long time, it has been widely believed that a higher education diploma, especially a bachelor’s degree, is the key to landing your dream job. However, with the increasing number of graduates produced by higher education institutions, a diploma alone is no longer enough.
The phenomenon that a higher education diploma is not a guarantee of employment is reflected in data collected by the Central Statistics Agency. According to the Central Statistics Agency in August 2014, 9.5 percent (688,660 people) of the total unemployed population in Indonesia were alumni higher education institutions. They had either a three-year diploma or a bachelor’s degree.
Educated unemployment (both diploma and bachelor’s degree holders) increased compared to 2013, with the percentage of unemployed college graduates at 8.36% (619,288 people) and in 2012 at 8.79% (645,866 people).
A number of higher education experts, such as Wardiman Djojonegoro, in a report in Kompas, said that the occurrence of educated unemployment is a combination of various factors, such as a lack of job opportunities, rapid growth of universities and study programs, and the lack of competence of graduates or the mismatch between their competence and the needs of employers.
The availability of jobs is a complex issue in itself, which is related to, among other things, the availability of adequate investment to absorb workers from various study programs, national economic performance, and global economic conditions. Other causes, such as quality control of higher education institutions and the provision of graduate competencies, can actually be better controlled. Individuals of productive age should not find themselves without specific skills when looking for work, making them unattractive to employers.
Competency
The competency gap between college graduates and the needs of the world of work has actually been addressed with the introduction of the Indonesian National Qualifications Framework (KKNI). The KKNI is a framework for grading the qualifications and competencies of the Indonesian workforce. The KKNI compares, equates, and integrates the education sector with the training and work experience sectors in a scheme for the recognition of work abilities that is adapted to the structure of various employment sectors.
With the KKNI, a diploma is not everything. Armed with their competencies, individuals can obtain a status equivalent to that of diploma holders who have obtained their diplomas through a specific level of education. Of course, higher education administrators must change their paradigm by not being complacent in simply awarding diplomas to students without considering the abilities and skills of their alumni. The issuance of the KKNI has become a framework for grading the qualifications and competencies of the Indonesian workforce. Thus, the needs of users with certain competencies of higher education graduates can be better met.
Higher education institutions also need to be encouraged to collaborate with employers in providing internship opportunities for students or recent graduates. Graduates can at least gain a glimpse of the real world of work they are about to enter.
One thing that needs to be clarified is the frequent confusion between the academic objectives of higher education, which is to create scientifically minded individuals, and vocational education, which aims to prepare skilled workers. Individuals sometimes think that by holding a bachelor’s degree, they have everything they need to work. However, this is not the case.
In order to reduce the number of unemployed bachelor’s degree holders, the governments needs to encourage the development of vocational education. The Ministry of Research, Technology, and Higher Education plans to prioritize the development of vocational education.
Data from the Directorate General of Higher Education states that there are 1,357 academies, 2,508 colleges, 255 polytechnics, and 124 institutes. Meanwhile, there are only 504 universities. This means that the majority of higher education institutions in Indonesia are engaged in vocational education. However, the number of vocational study programs (prodi) is only 20 percent of the total number of study programs available. By adding vocational programs, it is hoped that skilled workers who can be immediately absorbed by the market will be created.
However, it should be noted that the educational process in higher education institutions is not merely about producing workers and market orientation. There are other important aspects and functions of higher education, including vocational education. As stated in Law No. 12 of 2012 on Higher Education, higher education serves to develop skills and shape character, as well as a dignified national culture in order to educate the nation. Another function is to develop an innovative, responsive, creative, skilled, competitive, and cooperative academic community through the implementation of the Tridharma. Higher education also serves to develop science and technology by considering and applying humanistic values.
Ultimately, higher education is not only a matter of individual investment in order to be able to work, but also determines the welfare of the nation and its civilization.
