UT Expedites its Transformation into PTN-BH

In order to realize the transformation Universitas Terbuka (UT) which is currently with a status of Higher Education Institution as Public Service Agency or Perguruan Tinggi Negeri Berbadan Layanan Umum (PTN-BLU) into Higher Education Institution as an Incorporated Legal Entity or Perguruan Tinggi Negeri Berbadan Hukum (PTN-BH), UT holds a Senior Official Meeting Plus or Rapim Plus in a bid to discuss the Statute of UT as PTN-BH. Taking venue at Universitas Terbuka Convention Center, Tangerang Selatan (10/05/2021), this Senior Official Meeting plus or Rapim Plus is also a follow-up action from the recommendation provided by the Assessment Team of the Ministry of Education and Culture which was given on 17 March 2021 after the UT’s Rector gave his first presentation on the UT’s plan to become a Higher Education Institution as an Incorporated Legal Entity or PTN-BH.

The UT’s transformation efforts started since the enactment of the Regulation of the Ministry of Education and Culture Number 109 of 2013 regarding the Implementation of Open and Distance Education (PJJ) in Higher Education. It has opened the opportunity for all universities which are qualified to implement and provide Open and Distance Education. It would be difficult for UT, as the first and leading state university that provides Open and Distance Education, to realize its dream to become a world-class state university if its status is still Higher Education Institution as Public Service Agency (PTN BLU).

At a press meeting, the UT’s Rector, Prof. Ojat Darojat, M. Bus., Ph.D., explained as to why UT needs to transform into a Higher Education Institution as an Incorporated Legal Entity or PTN-BH university, “UT’s status is currently a Higher Education Institution as Public Service Agency or PTN-BLU, which is no longer adequate, we are no longer able to swiftly respond all the current changes, demands, and dynamics which are now happening in the society”. The strategic solution that needs to be done now is that UT has to transform into a Higher Education Institution as an Incorporated Legal Entity (PTN BH). Moving toward PTN-BH, UT would gain greater autonomy in various aspects, such as in academic affairs, asset management, and human resource recruitment.

Prof. Ojat said that, “By the time when UT becomes a Higher Education Institution as an Incorporated Legal Entity (PTN BH), there is a core strategy that we are going to do, namely Blue Ocean Strategy”. He also predicts that in the future, the most learning process is blended learning or hybrid learning, which is the combination of face-to-face learning and online learning. It is expected that these two approaches would become the alternative for the implementation of more effective and efficient education.