Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) is committed to providing the best education and enhancing its credibility as a world-class university. This year, 25 fields of study at UGM are listed in the 2024 QS World University Rankings (WUR) by Subject, three of which are from the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (Fisipol UGM).
The three programs that made it to the global ranking list are Public Policy and Management (MKP) or Social Policies and Administration, which ranked 108th; International Relations or Politics and International Studies, which ranked 156th; and Sociology, which ranked 206th.
The Vice Dean for Academic and Student Affairs at Fisipol UGM, Professor Poppy Sulistyaning Winanti, expressed pride in this achievement and reminded the faculty to strive for improvement. She noted that recognition from international-ranking institutions can help them consider which aspects need enhancement.
“This achievement can be a source of pride but also a kind of self-reflection on how we at Fisipol UGM need to improve quality and reputation even better,” Professor Winanti said in her statement to journalists on Friday (Apr. 18).
Professor Winanti mentioned that Fisipol UGM has long implemented policies based on the tri-dharma of higher education as its primary focus. Academically, Fisipol UGM has worked on building an international reputation by offering internationally standardized programs both at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
“For undergraduate programs, Fisipol UGM offers International Undergraduate Programs (IUP), while for postgraduates, there are double degree programs with various partners,” she explained.
The assessment criteria for ranking study fields by QS WUR include five indicators: academic aspects, education workforce, citations, H-index, and international research networks. To promote international research publications, Professor Winanti mentioned that Fisipol UGM has regularly provided research grants for faculty members and researchers for the past ten years.
“We continue to strive to enhance our international reputation through research cooperation and publications with international partners. One of them is through research grants in partnership schemes. We also encourage researchers and faculty members to bid for grants at the international level, which is something we continue to develop,” she explained.
Furthermore, Sustainability is one of the points added to the QS WUR assessment criteria this year. Regarding this aspect, Professor Winanti said that Fisipol UGM, in its programs, always encourages improvement in sustainability aspects from academic to social and environmental activities.
Some initiatives include providing facilities friendly to persons with disabilities, initiating village development partnerships, grant funding for community skill development, and research publications related to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) indicators.
Not stopping there, issues like Green Society, digital transformation, and social inclusion are three pillars continuously promoted by Fisipol UGM and realized through various programs.
“In the past two years, we have a flagship program called Green Society. Not only do we prioritize green issues (environment) in academic programs, research, and community service, but we also introduce various programs related to these issues,” she elaborated.
Professor Winanti emphasized that the internationalization of programs at Fisipol UGM will continue to be promoted. Apart from improving international academic standards, strengthening cooperation and increasing the number of international students at Fisipol UGM is also essential.
“We from the faculty will strongly support any program or policy to encourage international students to study at UGM, and with that, hopefully, Fisipol UGM can gain better international publications and attention,” she concluded.
Author: Tasya
Editor: Gusti Grehenson
Photographer: Donnie