Indonesia’s higher education landscape has slowly been changing over the past few years.

In 2024 alone, Deakin University and Lancaster University opened a joint campus in Bandung, Western Sydney University arrived in Surabaya and Central Queensland University prepared for launch in Balikpapan.

These follow Monash University, which in 2020 became Indonesia’s first foreign-owned university with a postgraduate campus in BSD City. Since then, it has held two graduations, with 48 Indonesian graduates in 2024 and another ceremony set for July.

With relaxed regulations and expanding global partnerships, Indonesian students can now access international education locally, often at lower cost than studying abroad.

But are students embracing this shift? The numbers suggest otherwise.

According to UNESCO, 59,224 Indonesians studied abroad in 2023, placing the country among the world’s top 25 sources of international students. The government’s LPDP scholarship program enrolled over 9,000 students overseas last year, and demand far exceeds supply. In the United States, Indonesian student enrollment rose by 10 percent (Open Doors Report 2024), while short-term exchange participation jumped 28.6 percent, driven by programs like IISMA.

Studying abroad is no longer limited to the elite. Middle-class families are making financial sacrifices to send their children overseas, often choosing more affordable destinations like Malaysia and China, where cultural familiarity eases adjustment.

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