University of Indonesia - History

History

The roots of UI date back to 1851. At that time, the colonial government of the Dutch East Indies established a school to train medical assistants. Training lasted for two years, and the graduates were certified to provide basic medical treatments. The degree conferred was Javanese Doctor, as the graduates were certified only to open their practice in the Dutch East Indies, especially Java. The program became more comprehensive; by 1864 it was expanded to three years. By 1875, the program of study had reached seven years and the graduates were entitled to the degree of Medical Doctor.

The next step came in 1898, when the Dutch East Indies government established a new school to train medical doctors, named STOVIA (School tot Opleiding van Inlandsche Artsen). The prerequisite to enter STOVIA was roughly the equivalent of a junior high school diploma. The schooling took nine years, so it was a mix between high school and university education. Many STOVIA graduates later played important roles in Indonesia's national movement toward independence, as well in developing medical education in Indonesia.

In 1924, the colonial government again decided to open a new tertiary-level educational facility, the RHS (Rechts Hogeschool), to train civilian officers and servants. The RHS would later evolve into the Faculty of Law. In 1927, STOVIA's status was changed to that of a full tertiary-level institution and its name was changed to GHS (Geneeskundige Hogeschool). The GHS occupied the same main building and used the same teaching hospital as the current Faculty of Medicine. Many GHS alumni would later play roles in establishing Universitas Indonesia.

After Indonesia gained independence, the Indonesian Institute for Higher Education (BPTRI) was established in Jakarta consisting of three faculties: Medicine and Pharmacy, Letters, and Law. The institute produced its first 90 graduate students as medical doctors in the same year. When the Dutch colonial army occupied Jakarta in late 1945, the BPTRI moved to Klaten, Surakarta, Yogyakarta, Surabaya and Malang. In 1946, the Dutch colonial government established the Nood Universiteit or Emergency University at Jakarta. In 1947, the name was changed to Universiteit van Indonesie (UVI) or Universitas Indonesia. Following the Indonesian National Revolution, the government established a state university in Jakarta in February 1950. The name was Universiteit Indonesia, comprising the BPTRI units and the former UVI, which was later changed into Universitas Indonesia (UI).

By 1950, UI was a multi-campus university, with faculties in Jakarta (Medicine, Law, and Letters), Bogor (Agronomy and Veterinary Medicine), Bandung (Engineering, Mathematics and Natural Sciences), Surabaya (Medicine and Dentistry), and Makassar (Economics). The Surabaya campus became the University of Airlangga in 1954. In the following year, the Makassar campus became the University of Hasanuddin. In 1959, the Bandung campus became the Bandung Institute of Technology. The School for Physical Education, which was also in Bandung, became part of Padjadjaran University in 1960. In 1964, the Bogor campus became the Bogor Agricultural Institute and the Faculty of Education in Jakarta became the State University of Jakarta. By 1965, UI consisted of three campuses, all in Jakarta: Salemba (Medicine, Dentistry, Economics, Engineering, Science and the Graduate School), Rawamangun (Letters, Law, Social Science and Psychology) and Pegangsaan (Public Health and parts of Medicine).

In 1987, several faculties from the Salemba and Rawamangun campuses moved to a newly built campus in the outskirts of Jakarta. The campus in southern Jakarta is known as the Depok campus (it is in the city of Depok).

In the year 2007-2008, Universitas Indonesia underwent substantial reform. Revenue was significantly increased from 800 billion to 1.6 trillion rupiah. The number of research publications has increased. This is also the case with the university's endowment fund.

The rector of Universitas Indonesia (July 2007), Prof Dr der.soz. Gumilar Rusliwa Somantri, is a reformist and the youngest leader among university presidents in Indonesia. He has been elected to and serves on the Board of Directors of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU).

According to the 2008 survey of Globe Asia, UI ranked number first among the top universities in Indonesia. This report has been supported by a leading Indonesian magazine Tempo, which carried out a survey and analysis to rank universities and education in Indonesia. Universitas Indonesia has improved its research collaboration with international partners.

In August 2008, the university won the Indonesia ICT award for the smart campus with best content and application. In terms of accessibility and connectivity, Universitas Indonesia has won an award because 90% of the university's area is covered by IT infrastructure and services with its 305 Mbit/s. connection to the Internet, and its 155 Mbit/s. connection to the Indonesia Higher Education Research Network (Inherent).