Darmasiswa Scholarship – a way to learn and have fun in Indonesia

I got a darmasiswa scholarship 2014-2015 to learn an Indonesian language in UNUD (University of Udayana) in Bali. I love to study, no matter what, sometimes I found myself interested in everything I see and always complain to myself that I am unable to learn it all. Languages is one of the skills I consider very useful in life, so Indonesian – why not. And being able to communicate with locals in their language even on a basic level is at least being polite and respective.

Also the important part is that the university takes care of your visa – you receive a student multy-entry KITAS valid for one year! For free! Because if you do social budaya visa by yourself it will cost you for 6 months at least 300$ not counting your return tickets abroad to renew it.

University gave me a lot and I am very thankful for that. I still can speak Indonesian very fairly, but it is enough to travel in remote areas, to bargain on the market and with taxi drivers, to share some jokes with locals.

Get ready that most of the teachers are not that fluent in English either so it’s gonna be hard at the beginning. I heard a lot of complaints from my classmates about the way of teaching but this is what made it so efficient at least for me – you have to learn how to talk otherwise you won’t understand a word. But in Bali a lot of students are too lazy with waves in their heads.

Sometimes it was boring I’m not going to lie, and some organizational issues made it nervous enough, but breath deeply you’re in Indonesia :)

Anyway darmasiswa scholarship also let you study music, dance and arts in some universities. I would never go to other islands (truly) but I think a lot of students have fun there as well. And most of participants there learn much more than us in Bali (parties surfing beach.. you know).

The best part for me was the closing ceremony! First it means that obligatory attendance of school is over, second – it’s always held in some part of Indonesia and last year it was in Sumatra. This time it was in Jakarta, not so exciting ..

The organization is horrible, the schedule was killing everyone (wake-up call at 5.30am, arrival after midnight), but what we’ve seen and experienced, people we’ve met – it was very funny and the closing part you already celebrate with your friends not those weird strangers at the opening ceremony :)

Darmasiswa scholarship is a lucky ticket to travel around the islands, to know local spots, to learn from the inside. The multicultural environment, the cultural perceptions and traditions, the attitude of locals; if you don’t reject them but accept, they will change your life and let you look at the world differently.

Now the requirements became stricter with limitation of the age to 30yo and a demand for being an enrolled student of any university. But in some countries the contest is so low that they close their eyes on this fact. Depends on your citizenship, you have more or less chances. In some countries, there are a few levels of application, in others – you are the only applied and accepted. Try your luck.