16. Learning outside the classroom (MBKM)
Internships, student exchange, research and other activities that replace classes and convert into course grades.
Under Kampus Merdeka (MBKM) a student can spend part of their study outside the classroom — an internship, a semester abroad, research, their own venture — and have it count as courses. This is optional: a campus that doesn’t run MBKM leaves it empty. A fixed part of the curriculum that everyone does (for example a semester-6 internship course) is better set up as a supervised course in the package (Courses).
1. Programs (admin)
flowchart TD A[Student applies] --> H([Head of Program]):::check H -->|rejected| X[Rejected]:::stop H -->|approved| L[Activity runs: logbook and documents] L --> M([Grading]):::check M -->|fixed courses| SC[Supervisor scores] M -->|learning agreement| GR[Head of Program grades each course] SC --> CV[Converted to transcript grades]:::done GR --> CV
On Catalog › Courses › Activity programs the admin creates each program:
- Name and national activity type (internship, student exchange, research…) — used for PDDikti.
- Credits per term (usually 20).
- Semesters that may apply and study programs that offer it (empty = all).
- Conversion:
- Fixed courses — everyone converts into the same courses, listed here; the supervisor scores them.
- Learning agreement — each student maps their partner’s courses to local courses (study abroad, exchange).
- Field mentor required and open to students.
2. Applying (student)
On My University › Activities the student sees the programs open to their study program and semester, and applies for the coming term with the partner (company, university…), place, field mentor, dates and motivation. Documents such as the acceptance letter are uploaded afterwards. A student can have one activity per term, and can cancel while it is still waiting.
3. Approval (Head of Program)
In Students › Activities the Head of Program approves the application and assigns a supervising lecturer, or rejects it with a reason.
From approval on, the activity’s courses are covered: they stay on (or are added to) the student’s KRS and bill, but the student is taken out of those classes and never placed in them. If the KRS is already paid, the courses are still added and their credits (plus a lab fee the KRS didn’t have yet) are billed as a separate invoice under Finance (nothing is billed on a campus with flat tuition, UKT); while a payment is being verified they are only reported. If the student changes an approved learning agreement, its courses stop being covered until the Head of Program approves it again — the student gets their class seats back meanwhile (a course that never had a class is filled by running Generate Classes again).
Once approved, the activity card also has Decree (SK) and examiners: the Head of Program records the SK number and date that assigned the activity and, where the activity is examined, its examiners. Both go to PDDikti — the SK on the activity, the examiners as Penguji Aktivitas. Leave them empty when the activity has none.
4. During the term
- The student keeps a logbook (date, hours, what they did) and uploads documents (final report, partner transcript).
- The supervisor reads the logbook in Supervised Activities and gives feedback.
5. The result
- Fixed courses — the supervisor scores each course (or one score for all). The activity is then completed.
- Learning agreement — the student proposes the agreement (partner course → local course, within the program’s credits); the Head of Program approves it, then enters each partner grade and its 0–100 local score. When every row is scored the activity is completed. Any change to an approved agreement sends it back for approval. Instead of approving, the Head of Program can Send back the agreement with a note; the student sees the note, changes the agreement and saves it again (courses it covered stop being covered meanwhile).
6. Conversion (Head of Program)
The Head of Program converts a completed activity: each course lands on the transcript with its grade in that term, marked as converted. Closing the semester leaves these grades alone. The activity is also reported to PDDikti (PDDikti reporting).
When something goes wrong
| Problem | Why | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| The student can’t apply | They already have an activity this term, or the program isn’t open to their semester or study program | Check the program’s semesters and study programs in Catalog › Courses › Activity programs |
| The learning agreement was sent back | The Head of Program asked for changes | The student reads the note, changes the agreement and saves it again |
| The student is missing from a class | The activity covers that course | Expected — the grade comes from the conversion |