Depok, June 5th 2023. The 73rd NAFSA Conference and Exhibition was officially closed last Friday (02/06/2023) at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington DC. The event, which had been taking place since May 30, was a forum that brought together educators from all over the world. This year, 14 universities from Indonesia and from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology, participated in NAFSA 2023: Inspiring an Inclusive Future.
Plt. Director General of Diktiristek Kemdikbud Ristek Prof. Nizam said that UI’s participation in the event had strengthened the bargaining power of higher education institutions in Indonesia. Through participation in the largest convention and exhibition in the US (NAFSA), with 10,000 participants coming from universities from five continents, it was no doubt that the opportunities for collaboration with global educational institutions were wide open.
“Even though the UniversitasIndonesia (UI) is currently aiming to become a leading university at the ASEAN level, we also want to expand to the world level. UI wants to be known as a university from Indonesia that has innovative and useful research in the global world,” said Prof. Ari Kuncoro S.E., M.A., Ph.D, Rector of UI. That is why, apart from offering academic cooperation, such as student/lecturer exchanges, UI offered research collaborations for exhibitors and visitors who attend NAFSA.
As expected by Prof. Nizam, the bargaining value of Indonesian higher education institutions in NAFSA was proven when UI created new collaborations and strengthened the agreements that have been made with educational partners from around the world. This was done with its partners through programs in the fields of education, research, and innovation.
“Every day, the UI booth is visited by an average of 30-35 people from universities and non-universities. As of last Friday’s (02/06) there were 91 prospective partners who were interested in working with UI. Of that number, there are 15 partners who already have an MOU with UI, but are interested in expanding their collaboration,” said Amelita Lusia, Head of the UI Public Relations Bureau and KIP, who attended NAFSA 2023 with the Head of UI’s International Affairs Office, drg. Baiduri Widanarko Ph.D.
Apart from the 15 partners, said Amelita, there are 13 non-university partners who are interested in establishing forms of cooperation related to education. “The rest are universities that are very interested in having a cooperation agreement with UI. They come from London, Barcelona, Prague, Madrid, Paris, Japan, China, India, Thailand and many more,” said Baiduri.
NAFSA was founded in 1948 (at that time an acronym for the National Association of Foreign Student Advisers), reflecting its goal of being a platform for professionals working with international students on campus. In 1964 the name became the National Association for Foreign Student Affair. Next, in 1990 it became NAFSA: Association of International Educators.
The first annual NAFSA conference was held in 1949 in Cleveland, Ohio. Since then, the NAFSA Annual Conference & Expo has been held in 38 cities in the United States (US) and Canada. This event is the largest and most comprehensive in presenting professionals in the world of education from all over the world. NAFSA is the only annual event that brings together educators, exhibitors, and business partners from the world of education in one arena. Next year, NAFSA will be held in New Orleans.