(Photo: Secretary General of the Ministry of Religious Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia (Kemenag RI) Prof. Dr. Phil. H. Kamaruddin Amin, M.A., officially opened the Language and Academic Preparation Program (LAPP), BIB Scholarship - Puspenma Kemenag - LPDP Kemenkeu online in Jakarta, Monday (13/10/2025).

Jakarta: The Secretary General of the Ministry of Religious Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia (Kemenag RI), Prof. Dr. Phil. H. Kamaruddin Amin, M.A., officially opened the Language and Academic Preparation Program (LAPP) or the 2025 Language and Academic Preparation Program. This LAPP program is aimed at recipients of the Indonesia Bangkit (BIB) Scholarship from the Ministry of Religious Affairs (RI) - the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) of the Ministry of Finance RI for further studies at master’s (S2) and doctoral (S3) levels abroad. This opening speech was delivered online from the Kemenag RI building in Jakarta, Monday (13/10/2025).

UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta was appointed as the host by the program’s responsible party, the Center for Religious Education and Religious Education Financing (Puspenma) of Kemenag, for the opening of the 2025 LAPP activities. The event was attended by 75 BIB scholarship recipients from across Indonesia, both online and onsite, held in the Diorama Room of UIN Jakarta, Monday (13/10/2025). Five State Islamic Universities (UIN) participated in this event, namely UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, UIN Sunan Ampel Surabaya, UIN Maulana Malik Ibrahim Malang, UIN Walisongo Semarang, and UIN Alauddin Makassar.

In his speech, the Secretary General of Kemenag, Prof. Dr. (Phil.) H. Kamaruddin Amin, expressed gratitude that students who wish to pursue further studies abroad can obtain scholarships along with language and academic preparation guidance held at these five UIN.

“We are grateful that our students who want to continue their studies abroad can receive scholarships and training in language and academic skills. Moving forward, we will further improve both the number of recipients and the quality of students who will be sent to study abroad,” said the Secretary General of Kemenag, who holds master’s degree from Leiden University and a doctorate from the University of Bonn.

 (Photo: UIN Jakarta Rector Prof. Asep Saepudin Jahar, M.A., Ph.D., accompanied by Vice Rector for Cooperation and Alumni Din Wahid, M.A., Ph.D., Head of Puspenma Dr. Ruchman Basori, M.Ag., and Head of the Language Development Center (PPB) UIN Jakarta Dr. Kustiwan Syarief, M.A., Ph.D., in the Diorama Room, UIN Jakarta, Monday, October 13, 2025.).

In his address, UIN Jakarta Rector Prof. Asep Saepudin Jahar, M.A., Ph.D., expressed his gratitude to the Ministry of Religious Affairs for organizing the LAPP program and encouraged participants to make the most of the opportunity. However, he also noted that the limited English proficiency of lecturers, staff, and students can hinder their work and academic progress. He urged Dr. Kustiwan Syarief, M.A., Ph.D., Head of the Language Development Center (PPB), to create a special language training program for lecturers, administrators, educational staff, and students.

 “I have also discussed this with Mr. Kustiwan, Head of the PPB, about how we can train lecturers, leaders, staff, and students to improve their language skills,” explained the Rector.

(Photo: Head of the Ministry of Religious Affairs' Center for Student Information, Dr. Ruchman Basori, M.Ag., provided guidance to 75 participants of the 2025 LAPP program, both on-site and online, in Jakarta, Monday (10/13/2025).

Meanwhile, the Head of the Ministry of Religious Affairs' Center for Student Information, Dr. Ruchman Basori, M.Ag., in his remarks emphasized the importance of all participating universities (PTP) to mobilize all their resources and efforts to ensure the success of the LAPP program.

"All 75 LAPP participants in 2025 must be trained and assisted not only to achieve a sufficient IELTS score, but also to obtain a Letter of Acceptance (LoA) from their target universities and be ready to study abroad," he concluded.

The event was attended onsite by the Rector of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Prof. Asep Saepudin Jahar, M.A., Ph.D.; the Vice Rector for Cooperation and Alumni, Din Wahid, M.A., Ph.D.; the Head of the Language Development Center (PPB), Dr. Kustiwan Syarief, M.A., Ph.D.; and the Head of the Center for Financing of Religious Education (Puspenma), Dr. Ruchman Basori, M.Ag., along with their teams.

Deans, Vice Deans, and several Heads and Secretaries of Study Programs within UIN Jakarta also joined online.

The event was also attended virtually by the rectors, vice rectors, and staff from the other participating universities (PTP) — UIN Sunan Ampel Surabaya, UIN Maulana Malik Ibrahim Malang, UIN Walisongo Semarang, and UIN Alauddin Makassar. (Photo: Tomi Kurniawan / Writer & Design: AH)