UNAIR NEWS – “For a long time I have wanted to join an exchange to Europe. After doing my research, it turns out that the University of Szeged is ranked number 1 in Hungary, so I chose it,” said Latissa Aura Wibowo, who is currently studying at the University of Szeged thanks to the Indonesian International Student Mobility Awards (IISMA) Program.
Since Monday, September 6, 2021, Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) Faculty of Psychology student from the class of 2018 has been active as a student at the University of Szeged. Latissa said she was excited. Moreover, all the classes she took were held face-to-face.
“I’m here admitted at the Faculty of Education. There are several classes I take here that can be transferred credits to UNAIR,” she said.
According to Latissa, her decision to choose the University of Szeged was correct. Apart from its good campus reputation, the City of Szeged itself is included in the Schengen Area. It makes it possible for newcomers like Latissa to travel to other countries by train or bus with the same visa.
“The visa can be used to travel to other countries. Like France, Germany or the Netherlands,” she added.
Furthermore, Latissa admitted that almost all of the tuition and support costs during her stay in Hungary were covered by IISMA, including visa, insurance, housing, and getting five PCR-Test allotments.
She felt happy and grateful. Latissa hopes that she can build relationships and gain diverse knowledge.
Previously, Latissa was quite insecure due to a lack of preparation during registration for the IISMA Program. She suggested students, who want to register for the IISMA Program, to prepare for an English language test certification. Moreover, many universities only accept TOEFL and IELTS.
“I realized it five days before registration is closed. And the TOEFL and IELTS results are quite long. Thank God, they accepted when I used Duolingo English Test. Two days later the results came out. Thankfully, the score is sufficient,” she explained.
In addition to the English test, the track record during college also needs to be prepared early on. From what she saw, the majority of IISMA awardees have organizational experience and are quite active on campus.
So did Latissa. Since her second year of college, she has been quite active as a volunteer in various campus activities. Latissa also has organizational experience from BEM, Faculty of Psychology and the Indonesian Psychometric Association.
“For you guys who are planning to join the IISMA Program, don’t feel insecure, just try it first. We do not ever know our luck. You’ll never know if you never try,” she said.
IISMA is a program supporting Kampus Merdeka (Independent Campus) program initiated by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia. (*)
Author: Erika Eight Novanty
Editor : Khefti Al Mawalia
