Indonesia is Opening Doors for Foreign Lecturers and Researchers to Join the World Class Professor Programme

The National Development Plan which includes the nine “NAWACITA” priority agendas is set forth in the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) for 2015-2019 which was established through Presidential Regulation Number 2 of 2015. The Government has prioritized national development to achieve food sovereignty, availability of energy, and management of maritime and marine resources during the period 2015-2019. The Government wants the economic position to be in line with high-quality growth. This means that economic growth must be inclusive, broad-based, and grounded in the excellence of human resources and capability in science and technology.

To achieve the vision, mission and priority agendas of NAWACITA national development in accordance with the RPJMN for 2015-2019, the Strategic Plan (Renstra) of the Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education RI for 2015-2019 has been prepared and stipulated through Regulation of the Minister of Research, Technology and Higher Education Number 13 of 2015. Among the performance indicators of the strategic targets set in the Renstra are to have 5 universities ranked in the world top 500 universities by 2019; 41,500 lecturers with doctoral-level qualifications; 2,305 intellectual property rights; 12,089 international publications; 15 industry-worthy prototypes (TRL 7); and 30 innovations have gone into production and utilized by users.

To be able to achieve these strategic target indicators, the Directorate General of Science and Technology Resources and Higher Education of the Ministry of Research Technology and Higher Education has carried out several innovative programs, such as the Master’s Education Program toward Doctorate for Eminent Scholars (PMDSU), the Scholarship Program for Superior Indonesian Lecturers (BUDI), specifically for doctoral level education, both domestically and abroad, SAME (Scheme for Academic Mobility and Exchange), and the visit program of world-class Indonesia Diaspora Professors Indonesia to various universities in Indonesia.

In order to accelerate achievement of the strategic target indicators of the Ministry’s Renstra for 2015-2019, starting in the 2017 budget year, the Directorate General of Science and Technology Resources and Higher Education of the Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education has started the World Class Professor Program (WCP), a program to invite world-class professors from various prominent universities, both local and foreign, as visiting professors to be placed at various universities in Indonesia for a maximum period up to the end of November. The purpose of this program is so that lecturers/ researchers can interact with these eminent, well-known professors in order to enhance their academic life, competence, quality and contribution to the development of science and technology and strengthening of the National Innovation system in an effort to make the best possible use of the diversity and wealth of Indonesia’s natural resources for the greatest possible prosperity of the Indonesian people, as mandated by the Constitution.

Interested lecturers/researchers can download the guidebook below to know more information on types of scheme, requirements, activities, funding and outputs.