Structured student internship programme strengthening in Indonesia

Initial vocational education and training, Continuing Vocational Education and Training
29.09.2022
Mobilising companies to participate in structured student internship is still challenging in Indonesia. To gain more insights into what makes engagement in internships difficult, several projects and Indonesian institutions collaborated to survey businesses. One of the main reason for companies not engaging in internships was that the duration and the time of the internship are not aligned with the needs of the industry. An action plan has been created to provide recommendations to policymakers in order to contribute to dual VET strengthening in the country.

Under the guidance of the Donor Committee for Dual Vocational Education and Training (DCdVET), a collaboration took place between the Swiss-funded Skills for Competitiveness (S4C) project, the German-funded project TVET System Reform (TSR), the Industrial Human Resources Development Agency (BPSDMI), the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN Indonesia), and EDUKadin of Central Java. The aim of this collaboration was to support the Indonesian dual vocational education and training (VET) system development through a cost-benefit study on structured internships.

The study started in December 2020 with a baseline survey to assess if costs are really the most crucial factor for companies to not engage in dual VET internships. 23 companies/respondents revealed that the costs for companies are relatively low, thus internships should be attractive for companies. However, the number of companies engaging in internships is still below expectations and the reasons for not engaging are probably beyond cost-benefit considerations. Based on those results, the study continued with a motivation survey as the qualitative method to get better understanding why companies do not train as costs do not seem to be the main issue.

156 companies (96 training companies and 60 non-training companies) participated in the motivation survey in October 2021. To gain more detailed insights into what makes engagement in internship difficult and how the business sector can engage more strongly, a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) was organised in March 2022 with 40 companies joining.

Some of the factors highlighted by the industry include the duration and the time of implementation of the internship which are not aligned with the needs of the industry, so the benefits of the internship are still in doubt. The industry expects internships to provide benefits such as making the industry more productive and can improve the quality of products/services. Furthermore, the tax reduction incentive is considered ineffective if the industry does not see the benefits of internships.

The results of the FGD were presented by Prof. Dr. Stefan C. Wolter from University of Bern during the Policy Dialogue event held in May 2022, which also aimed to collect inputs from different parties for internship programme strengthening. One of the key recommendations from the Policy Dialogue event is that better aligning internships with company needs should be done. Finally, a draft roadmap or action plan has been created to provide policy recommendations to policymakers that can contribute to dual VET strengthening in Indonesia.

2018 - 2022
Indonesia
Initial vocational education and training, Continuing Vocational Education and Training
Skills for Competitiveness (S4C)
S4C, funded by SECO (Swiss State Secretariat of Economic Affairs), is collaborating with Indonesian line ministries and industries to establish a dual VET (vocational education and training) system through selected polytechnics and community academy in metal, manufacturing, food and furniture/wood sectors, which are among key contributors to the national development.
Switzerland
Initial vocational education and training
DC dVET Donor Comittee for Dual Vocational Education and Training
Vocational Education and Training has always been a main pillar in the implementation of the development policies of Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. In order to make better use of the long standing experiences and expertise of the members, the four countries have founded the Donor Committee for Dual Vocational Education and...