Last semester, from February until July 2024, ACICIS welcomed 13 students in the Flexible Language Immersion Program (FLIP) at Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM). Many of these students were supported by the Australian Government’s New Colombo Plan (NCP) initiative. The FLIP program combines Indonesian language classes from INCULS UGM and other regular immersion classes from the Faculty of Cultural Science and the Faculty of Law. Three days of orientation seminars were held at the beginning of the program to acquaint students with subjects such as interacting with ACICIS staff members, finding accommodation, and Indonesian culture 101. Students were also supported during orientation to select classes based on their language proficiency and study areas of interest.
Additionally, the FLIP program also offers students the chance to undertake an internship with a local host organisation, either throughout the semester in addition to their coursework, or over the break between semesters. For example, Charlotte Kay from the Australian National University and India Lewis from the University of Melbourne interned with Mitra Wacana, an organisation focused on advocating for a gender-just society in Indonesia. During this internship, Charli and India were afforded wonderful opportunities to participate in a radio show, and to visit a local village to speak about gender relations. Furthermore, Julia Doherty from the Australian National University interned with JRS (Jesuit Refugee Service), an organisation working with displaced people to provide them with better protections and opportunities.
Throughout the semester, ACICIS FLIP program students were also involved in a variety of other activities outside of the classroom. Zekie Angel from the University of Sydney and Alice Morgan from the Australian National University volunteered weekly with Animal Friends Jogja, while Anna Burne from SOAS dedicated her free time to joining the UGM Gamelan Club. Annabelle Love from the University of Melbourne became an active member of the Yogyakarta chapter of the Australia Indonesia Youth Association (AIYA), while Madeleine Dawkins from the Australian National University travelled to Jakarta to attend the AIYA National Congress. All students also utilised their free time to travel around Indonesia throughout the semester, including to Labuan Bajo, Bali, Karimunjawa and North Sumatra.
This memorable semester program wrapped up with an INCULS graduation ceremony and ACICIS farewell dinner that was held at the Grand Keisha Hotel, Yogyakarta. At the ACICIS farewell dinner, Jake Matthews from the University of Melbourne gave a wonderful speech expressing how much he cherished his time spent in Yogyakarta as a FLIP student. We hope this speech reflected the experience of all students who participated in the FLIP program for semester 58, and we hope that they will continue to hone their Indonesian language abilities and broaden their scholarly and intercultural perspectives in the future. ACICIS is so proud of the achievements made by all of the students in this short but meaningful period. We wish all of you the best for the future. Congratulations and sampai jumpa lagi!