Yogyakarta (5/11) – The student exchange program is a program that provides opportunities for students to experience the education system abroad for a certain period. Becoming one of the participants in the student exchange program has become a dream for most students, especially university students. Besides being an exciting experience, participating in a student exchange program also has a myriad of benefits that can certainly help you shape and develop your abilities.
Of course, there are still many students who are afraid and hesitant to do student exchanges because they have to face a new environment and new culture and adapt to the system and curriculum that is the destination campus, especially if they are not used to living alone. This is also confirmed by Moch. Noerizza Triananta, who is a student of the International Program of Government Affairs and Administration, Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (IGOV UMY) batch 2020 is conducting Student Exchange at Khon Kaen University, Thailand for 1 semester. “Before I left, I was afraid and nervous because Thailand has a very different culture and rules from Indonesia. Therefore, I was quite worried that I could not follow this program properly.”
However, after almost 2 weeks in Thailand, he felt it was not as scary as he had expected. According to him, participating in student exchange activities gave him a lot of new experiences and new cultures, plus when he came he coincided with the Loy Krathong activity. Loi Krathong is a Siamese festival that is celebrated annually throughout the Kingdom of Thailand and its nearby countries. The name Krathong Festival means “to float the baskets”, and it comes from the tradition of making Krathongs and decorative baskets that flow in rivers.
“After living for 2 weeks in Thailand, my expectations were not that scary because, in my opinion, there were many activities that gave me a lot of new experiences as well as a warm welcome and help from the Indonesian student association in Thailand (Permitha Simpul Khon Kaen)”. ARP
