Bringing Social Action Closer to the Community, New Students of UNU Jogja Engage in Activities in Dowangan and Kaliabu, Sleman

Yogyakarta, Indonesia — More than 500 new students of UNU Jogja took part in a social action program as part of the GENIUS UNU Jogja 2025 series. This social action (Community Service) was held in the villages of Dowangan and Kaliabu, Banyuraden, Gamping, Sleman, on Thursday, September 25, 2025.

The Community Service program included various activities such as tree planting, cleaning mosques and prayer halls, maintaining cemeteries, and taking care of roads, ditches, water sources, and public facilities around the villages.

Chair of GENIUS UNU Jogja 2025, Nurhadi, explained that the students were deployed to ten different locations with diverse missions. “Several points were designated according to the needs of the community. For example, at Gubug Pemancingan Dowangan, we organized a cleaning activity to support a healthy and clean fish farming site, which in turn can help improve the local economy,” he said.

In addition, students also participated in maintenance activities at other areas such as village roads, ditches, Kaliabu cemetery, mosques and prayer halls, sports facilities, security posts, and the local health post (posyandu).

Head of RT 01 Kaliabu, Wulanto, welcomed the program. According to him, the involvement of students greatly helps the community. “We hope that such activities can be held more often. There are many community programs that need support from a team, such as health services at the posyandu or religious events,” he stated.

During the campus orientation period, new students of UNU Jogja not only participated in Community Service but also received guidance to determine five career goals for the future, which are divided into five tracks: Ulama, Scientist, Innovator, Entrepreneur, and Professional. These directions were presented directly by Acting Rector of UNU Jogja, Suhadi Cholil, together with the five Deans of UNU Jogja.

Nurhadi added that setting career goals at the beginning of university life is crucial. Therefore, the university has implemented various mentoring strategies, including mapping students’ interests and personality traits to align with the five career tracks. “From the results of this assessment, we are able to identify the readiness of students to achieve their future goals,” he explained.

In addition, new students also received training to enhance their soft skills as well as spiritual development through the study of the Kitab Kuning (Classical Islamic texts traditionally studied in Indonesian Islamic boarding schools or pesantren). This program supports the growth of abilities in problem solving, analytical thinking, work ethics, creativity, innovation, and emotional management. [Latifah]