IUP students of ITS System and Industrial Engineering Department while on the way to study in France

ITS Campus, ITS News – Despite the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) still continues to hold internationalization programs, one of which is the international exposure for students of the International Undergraduate Program (IUP). This time, as many as 10 students of the ITS System and Industrial Engineering Department (DTSI) took part at the student exchange program to the University of Burgundy Franche-Comté (UBFC), France, that departed last Sunday (16/1).

Deputy Head of DTSI ITS Nani Kurniati ST MT PhD explained the 2019 batch of students will take part in this program for one semester until May. According to Nani, the even semester period at the UBFC campus is faster than the ITS campus because learning has started on January 17, 2022. “So when they get there, they immediately start their activities,” she explained.

The alumnus of the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (NTUST) said that from several international exposure options such as joint degrees or double degrees, DTSI has a provision for one semester to conduct foreign exchanges. UBFC itself is one of the campuses for IUP students who have a program match with DTSI from the results of a meeting with the ITS Global Partnership Directorate (DKG) and related campuses. “The student quota is determined by UBFC by considering the estimated cost of accommodation,” said Nani.

The ten students of the ITS Department of System and Industrial Engineering (DTSI) who took part in the student exchange to UBFC France

During the student exchange program, Nani said that they had the opportunity to take part in programs that include aspects of language and culture. The program is taken for 270 hours or about 30-semester credit units (SKS). “Among them include the industrial heritage agenda such as the visit to several industries in France,” said the lecturer in the ITS DTSI Manufacturing Systems Laboratory.

Of course, she continued, this program also brings engineering courses and innovations that complement the scientific fields of their study program. Interestingly, the program provides intensive advanced French language classes with a total of 7 credits taken, in which the student has taken a basic level French course at the Institut Francais Indonesia (IFI) for 100 hours. “So they are quite qualified to learn the advanced level,” said Nani.

The students of the ITS Department of System and Industrial Engineering (DTSI) while in Besançon, France

Because the later learning at UBFC will be held directly on campus, Nani revealed that students will be given a booster for the Covid-19 vaccine from UBFC as a defense measure in the current pandemic conditions. In addition, the town of Besançon, which is home to the students, is a small town that is not too crowded, so the worry of assembling crowds can be avoided.

With this internationalization program, Nani hopes that in the future students will not only gain academic knowledge. The most important thing, according to Nani, is how students can adapt to life abroad with an education system that is different from local lecturers and students.

This is a different learning opportunity because it cannot be obtained if it is only done virtually. “Hopefully they can follow the learning as well as possible and always be healthy until they return to their homeland,” she concluded hopefully. (ITS Public Relations)

Reporter: Astri Nawwar Kusumaningtyas