As the first activity of the Batch 4 SEAMEO BIOTROP Certified Internship and Independent Study Program (MSIB), SEAMEO BIOTROP held an onboarding activity on March 1, 2023. The activity was held in the Jati Room at SEAMEO BIOTROP and online via the Zoom platform. It was attended by 61 MSIB participants from various universities across Indonesia, as well as mentors and instructors from SEAMEO BIOTROP, and representatives from participating universities.

The certified internship program under the Kampus Merdeka Batch 4 SEAMEO BIOTROP aims to provide practical and direct experience to students in their chosen field of study. The program is designed to give students the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills they have learned in the classroom to real-world situations. In addition, the internship program is equivalent to 20 credits at the university, allowing students to earn academic credit that can be recognized at their home institution.

In his opening remarks, Dr. Zulhamsyah Imran, the Director of SEAMEO BIOTROP, expressed his hope that students would become a focal point for generating ideas and concepts in accordance with the Kampus Merdeka program. Through this program, participants are expected to produce well-documented and impactful outcomes. "Please use this internship opportunity to learn soft and hard skills as future leaders of the nation," he concluded.

Dr. Sri Gunani Partiwi, the Director of Higher Education at the Ministry of Education and Culture, attended the event virtually to give welcoming remarks and officially open the program. In her remarks, she emphasized the importance for the students to utilize the MSIB program to expand their skills, competencies, and soft skills to prepare for their future. The program also serves as a platform for students to gain learning experiences outside of the campus under the guidance of professional mentors in their respective fields.

The activity continued with a presentation by Ms. Dewi Suryani, the SEAMEO BIOTROP’s MSIB program coordinator, on an overview of SEAMEO BIOTROP's flagship programs, as well as the program's syllabus and timeline.

The program was then followed by a campus tour, where students were taken around to familiarise themselves with the mentors and instructors at BIOTROP where they will carry out their internship program for the next four months.

The SEAMEO BIOTROP program focuses on the overarching theme of Tropical Biodiversity Management, consisting of four topics: Tropical Biodiversity Risk Management, Environmental Quality Laboratory Management, Sustainable Urban Agriculture, and Management and Utilization of Sub-Optimal Land in Tropical Regions.

A total of 2,267 students from universities across Indonesia applied for this program, and only 61 students were selected through administrative screening, the National Insight Test, the Academic Potential Test, and interviews. (Haritz Cahya, Dewi Suryani, Rhomi Ardiansyah)