Universitas Brawijaya held Academy Coverage and Evaluation Monitoring of the 2023 Village Past Learning Recognition Program (RPL) for Master Program Postgraduate students (S2), Friday (21/7). This activity is in collaboration with the Ministry of Villages and Bojonegoro Regency to provide appreciation and recognition of the achievements of one’s learning experiences obtained from formal and informal education to work experience competencies towards formal education. The Village RPL scheme provides opportunities for village apparatus such as: village heads and village officials, members of Village Consultative Council, Professional Assistance Staff, Village Community Empowerment Cadres (KPMD), Village State Owner Enterprises Joint Management, Management of Village Community Institutions/Village Customary Institutions and other village activists to pursue further education at both S1/D4 and S2 levels.
In 2023, Universitas Brawijaya opened five Village RPLs implementing study programs for applicants from Bojonegoro Regency, as many as 140 participants had passed the selection through the recognition stage from a total of 300 applicants. The five study programs consist of Masters in Agricultural Economics FP (35 participants), Masters in Sociology FP (35 participants), Masters in Agribusiness FP (12 participants), Masters in Urban and Regional Planning FT (31 participants), Resource Management, Environment and Postgraduate School Development (27 participants). Learning activities are carried out in a hybrid manner for a full year with active lecture stages in semester 1 from April to August, monitoring in mid-July until completion of thesis in active lectures in semester 2 (August 2023 – January 2024). Other activities such as practicum, coaching clinic, field visits and guest lectures are also given to RPL students as a method of acceleration while in campus.
Prof. Widodo, S.Si, M.Si, PhD, Med.Sc as the Chancellor of UB said that this activity can develop self-capacity and knowledge for village development independently and sustainably. Village progress must be supported by easy access to infrastructure services, proper budget absorption, and economic potential in the community. Therefore, through this RPL program, students are required to create innovations that can solve problems in each village through a final project (thesis). “Of course the preparation of the thesis does not only act as an applicable solution, but can be a media campaign, how to explore the uniqueness of the village with various parameters, whether its local wisdom, natural beauty, local culture, whatever its features can attract people and have an impact on economic movement broadly,” he said.
Village RPL is expected to be one of the keys to accelerate independent villages in Bojonegoro, increasing the status of villages starting from developing villages, turning into developed villages and then forming independent villages. This increase in status should be balanced with the ability of human resources both in terms of education and the required soft-skills, besides that the progress of a village can affect the surrounding areas to develop too. In 2022 the achievements of independent villages were 105, 251 developed villages and 13 developing villages. Whereas this year, out of a total of 419 villages, 165 already have the title of being independent villages, in the future the implementation of this program can become a pioneer which can be followed by other disadvantaged areas. [UB PR/ Trans. Iir]
