A life-changing experience with the LPDP Scholarship

MSc Accounting & Finance student Maria speaks to us about her experience of applying for the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) scholarship, and how it has opened the door to new challenges and will broaden her network when she returns to Indonesia. 

My name is Maria Gracia Layan and I come from Indonesia. Before deciding to pursue my master’s degree, I had three years of work experience in Business Process Improvement, where I developed my critical thinking and problem-solving. The role gave me a chance to develop my passion for learning and sharing, however, I realised that my knowledge and my experience were not sufficient enough for me to encounter more challenging opportunities.

Why did you decide to apply for an MSc?

I am studying the MSc Accounting & Finance at Warwick Business School (WBS) as I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Accounting and I aim to become an educator after finishing my postgraduate study.

I also decided to apply for a master’s degree because I want to expand my networking skills. My fellow friends here are very supportive and talented. I believe that having the experience to study in a multicultural society will strengthen my personality and be fruitful for my future endeavours.

What is the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) Scholarship?

The Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (Lembaga Pengelola Dana Pendidikan/LPDP) Scholarship is a full-ride scholarship given by The Ministry of Finance of Indonesia, which aims to prepare Indonesia’s future leaders. It finances master’s and PhD students to study in world-class universities around the world. The main characteristics to be awarded this scholarship are having leadership skills and intelligence proven by positive contributions done in your community, completed with nationalism towards Indonesia.

When did you decide to apply for the LPDP Scholarship?

I decided to apply for LPDP in May 2021. Getting a scholarship was such a roller-coaster and a soul-searching journey. It took three years for me to overcome all the insecurities and finally give applying for the scholarship a try. The LPDP Scholarship process was quite short and the whole process took only two months. However, I had prepared all the required elements in advance, so I was ready for the selection process. The process consisted of administration selection, academic potential tests, and an interview panel. I found out that I’d been successfully selected to be an LPDP awardee by the end of July 2021.

How did the LPDP Scholarship help you?

The LPDP scholarship is prestigious among Indonesians. It has helped me not only financially but also in elevating my future goals. In terms of financial sponsorship, it covers 100% of the tuition fee to study at Warwick Business School, the living allowance during the period of my study, and all other miscellaneous expenses. Besides this, the scholarship has opened my way to share my insights with other youths in Indonesia by becoming a guest speaker on several study platforms. Hence, I believe that this scholarship will help me to broaden my network as I return to my country.

Is there an LPDP community? Have you engaged with the community, and if so, what benefits has this had?

LPDP has a large community and it connects many important people in Indonesia. Many LPDP Awardees are studying at the University of Warwick, and the community helped by giving me so much information which was useful upon my arrival in the UK.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

I would say that the blended-teaching learning model applied in WBS is beneficial during this pandemic. Asynchronous learning is really helpful since it gives students context before the lecturing class. WBS is also very supportive in terms of academic writing, and students can take academic writing classes.

Overall, studying at WBS is a life-changing experience. It provides a world-class teaching system and an international environment.

Discover more about the range of scholarships on offer to WBS MSc students.