From Competition to Connectivity: The Future of Higher Education
Ahmad Tholabi Kharlie
(Professor at UIN Jakarta and Member of the Higher Education Council)
In Indonesia’s public imagination, public universities (PTN) have long been positioned as symbols of meritocracy. They represent hard work, intellectual capacity, and success in passing strict selection processes. Being admitted to a PTN is seen as proof of achievement in an academic competition that is considered objective and fair.
However, reality on the ground is becoming more varied. In several cases, PTN graduates face challenges when transitioning into the workforce, while some graduates from certain private universities (PTS) enter multinational companies or strategic industries more quickly.
At this point, an old question becomes relevant again: does the system we consider meritocratic truly work evenly in producing opportunities after graduation?
Today’s job market values a combination of skills—adaptability, communication, leadership, and social networking. Universities function not only as places to build capacity but also to expand relationships.
Some private universities, especially those oriented toward industry, have responded to these changes relatively quickly. Flexible curricula, partnerships with businesses, and a strong emphasis on soft skills make the learning experience more aligned with job market needs.
This aligns with the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report (2023), which shows that most future jobs require a mix of technical and human skills. Institutions that fail to integrate both risk producing graduates who are academically strong but practically unprepared.
Meanwhile, public universities face structural challenges. Curriculum changes often require long bureaucratic processes. This can be understood as a relevance issue tied to the speed of adaptation.
According to Joseph E. Stiglitz, public institutions tend to experience inertia when facing market dynamics. In higher education, when the job market moves quickly while universities adapt slowly, the gap between education and real-world needs widens.
As a result, shifts in employer preferences are shaped by how well institutions build learning ecosystems that respond to change.
Social Capital
This issue is also closely tied to social capital. In Pierre Bourdieu’s framework, education is not just about knowledge transfer but also about the reproduction of opportunities through social and cultural networks.
When certain campuses become spaces where relatively homogeneous groups—such as upper-middle-class students—gather, they not only produce graduates but also build future networks of influence. Friendships can evolve into professional collaborations, career access, and opportunities for strategic positions.
In this context, post-graduation outcomes are linked to access to ecosystems that are not equally distributed. Skills remain important, but they interact with the surrounding social environment.
OECD data (2019) show that socio-economic background remains a strong predictor of job opportunities and income, even after completing higher education. This indicates that education has not fully functioned as an equal tool for social mobility.
The issue goes beyond unequal opportunities—it reflects unequal ecosystems. Environments rich in social capital offer broader opportunities and faster pathways to success.
This suggests that what appears as a meritocracy is often shaped by privilege. The system looks fair on the surface but operates unevenly beneath.
Empirical indicators of this shift are also visible in QS Graduate Employability Rankings (2022–2024), which emphasize employer reputation, alumni outcomes, and industry connections as key measures of university quality.
In Indonesia, a similar trend is emerging. Studies by the Ministry of Education and Statistics Indonesia (2023) show sectoral differences: public sector jobs are still dominated by PTN graduates, while private sectors—including multinational companies and startups—place more weight on practical experience, industry exposure, and job readiness.
The LinkedIn Economic Graph (2023) also indicates that career pathways in strategic sectors are increasingly influenced by internships, industry projects, and professional networks built during university years. This aligns with Anthony P. Carnevale, who highlights the importance of experiential context in determining the value of education in the labor market.
These findings point to a consistent pattern: industries tend to recruit graduates who are highly job-ready. This readiness is shaped by active and relevant ecosystems.
From Competition to Connectivity
At this stage, the issue calls for a rethinking of higher education design. The focus should shift toward building ecosystems that are more connected, adaptive, and equitable—beyond mere competition between institutions.
The state needs to take a more progressive role by promoting a hybrid university model—an approach that combines the academic depth of public universities with the agility and industry alignment often found in private institutions. This can be implemented through limited deregulation of curricula, incentives for co-teaching with industry practitioners, and stronger cross-campus internship programs.
At the same time, access to high-quality ecosystems must be expanded more evenly. Quality internships, professional networks, and industry exposure should reach students across regions and social backgrounds. Without this, higher education risks reproducing the very inequalities it seeks to reduce.
At the institutional level, public universities can strengthen their responsiveness to industry needs without compromising academic integrity. Private universities, on the other hand, must balance market orientation with their role in shaping character and critical thinking.
In this configuration, higher education operates in a landscape that demands both relevance and fairness. The tension between the two must be managed carefully as part of the effort to keep education as a space for human development as well as workforce preparation.
This article was published in the Opinion column of Harian Disway, Page 14, April 2026.