Getting Degrees in a Factory

By Prihantoro
Published in Korea Times, 26/05/2011

It was at 8:30 a.m. on a lovely Sunday morning in Daegu. The roads were quiet. Everybody seemed to be enjoying the day off, but not with a number of Indonesians in ``Hankuk Nochong” (the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions) building. Around 30 students were waiting for final exams that day in a quiet room, somewhere on the 4th floor.


Way down below in the parking lot, some people got out of a white car in a rush. Most of them were students, but one of them was an officer in charge of the students’exams. Coming a long way from Seoul, in his right hand he was carrying a suitcase with exam papers. In the other he hand was carrying a crate of bottled water. Others were also carrying some items, for that day, preparing to work 10 hours in a row for five exams, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. At the same time, around 100 Indonesians were also gathering in Hanyang University in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, for their final exams.

Noticing how serious they were during the exams make some people assume that they were just ordinary university students, like other Indonesians studying in some universities in Korea. But don’t be mistaken. They have the same enthusiasm and thirst for knowledge like other Indonesian students, but during the weekdays, most of them are factory workers in Korea. They hope to return to Indonesia, not only as trained workers, but also as formally educated workers.

Despite their enthusiasm for higher education, the main problem for these Indonesian workers is the schedule. Most of them work during the weekdays. The shift also changes from day to night. Some even have to work on weekends, too. In this way, attending an ordinary college in Korea is almost impossible.

Another problem is credit recognition. Since the length of stay of these workers vary, it is possible that have to they must leave Korea before they finish their studies. Due to the difference in the education system, they might be required to take more courses when continuing their studies in Indonesia as some of the courses in Korea are not recognized by the Education Authority in Indonesia. Therefore, it requires a higher education system that is flexible to time, and recognized by the Indonesian authority.

With the help of some international communities in Korea, starting from February 2011, Indonesian higher education, via Open University Indonesia managed to operate open and distance learning classes in Korea for the first time. As of now, there are three departments; English (Translation), socio-political communication and economy-management.

In Korea, the organizers of this distance learning university are all from Indonesia. They are all Indonesian students studying in Korean universities, who are willing to spend some of their time under the pressures of their lab projects and college assignments.

To start a new habit is not easy. Workers are accustomed to factory routines, but all of a sudden they are required to deal with academic life. In order to bridge this gap, some graduate school students also help these workers with off-line tutorials. The classrooms for these activities are supported by some international communities in Korea, managed by private or Korean government institutions.

We are so much indebted to these international communities. From this article, representing the management of Indonesia Open University in Korea, I would like to say thanks to Daejon International Community Center (DICC), Hankuk Nochong Daegu, ICC Ansan, and Hanyang University for helping us to undergo this educational activity. Your invaluable contributions will strengthen the relations between Korea and Indonesia, especially in the field of education.

The writer is a student of Graduate Schools of Linguistics and Cognitive Science Department in Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. He is also a tutor at Indonesia Open University in Korea. He can be reached at prihantoro2001@yahoo.com.