Jakarta. State universities dominate the ranks of Indonesia’s best higher education institutions because government funding allows them to offer top-notch labs and research centers, in addition to employing qualified lecturers with degrees from reputable international universities.

Their relatively affordable tuition fees also attract the brightest high school graduates, further boosting the competitiveness of state universities compared with their private peers.

However, students and parents have been complaining about substantial hikes in tuition fees in recent years, alleging that these increases were unilaterally imposed by state universities to boost profits.

Despite complaints about rising fees, Indonesian state universities have among the lowest costs in the region, especially compared with those in neighboring Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand.

Below are the 10 most expensive state universities in Indonesia based on their tuition fees payable every semester:

1. University of Indonesia (UI)
The University of Indonesia is widely considered the best in Indonesia and is ranked 10th in Southeast Asia and 49th in Asia. The regular undergraduate programs cost between Rp 7.5 million and Rp 25.2 million ($469  and $1,577) per semester.

2. Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB)
The institute is famous for having Founding President Sukarno as its alumnus. ITB's regular undergraduate programs have fees of Rp 12.5 million per semester, while its business and management faculty costs Rp 20 million. ITB has a non-regular entry system with a tuition fee almost double that of the regular program, at Rp 24 million per semester.

3. Gadjah Mada University (UGM)
The Yogyakarta-based university is the largest in Indonesia in terms of the number of students. It provides subsidies of between 25 percent and 100 percent of tuition fees to students from low-income families. Tuition fees range from Rp 7.6 million to Rp 24.7 million per semester, depending on the faculty.

4. Bogor Agricultural University (IPB)
IPB imposes tuition fees of Rp 10 million-12 million per semester, with the veterinary program being the most expensive. It offers non-subsidy entries with fees of up to Rp 18 million per semester.

5. Padjadjaran University (Unpad)
Located in West Java, Unpad offers subsidies that allow eligible students to pay tuition fees as low as Rp 500,000 per semester. The normal fees range up to Rp 24 million, depending on the program. For example, the medicine faculty has much higher fees than the social sciences faculty.

6. Brawijaya University
Like Unpad, Brawijaya University also offers subsidized tuition fees starting from Rp 500,000 per semester, although the ceiling fees can reach up to Rp 24.5 million per semester.

7. Airlangga University (Unair)
The university in the East Java capital of Surabaya has four categories of subsidized tuition fees depending on the income of the student’s parents. The lowest fee is Rp 500,000 while the highest stands at Rp 25 million per semester.

8. Diponegoro University (Undip)
Located in Semarang, Central Java, Undip has eight fee categories ranging from Rp 500,000 to Rp 22 million. To obtain the generous subsidies, students must produce documents and proof of their parents’ economic conditions.

9. Sebelas Maret University (UNS)
UNS has eight categories of tuition fees ranging from Rp 500,000 to Rp 30 million.

10. Hasanuddin University (Unhas)
Unhas is the only university outside Java Island to make it among the ten most expensive state universities in the country. However, Unhas provides subsidies of up to 100 percent under certain conditions. The normal tuition fee is capped at Rp 20 million per semester.

Learning costs also depend on the cost of living in the respective region. For example, Jakarta and Bandung have substantially higher living costs than Semarang and Surakarta in Central Java.

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