Indonesia
Twenty prospective students are competing for a doctoral scholarship in Islamic Religious Education (PAI) offered by East Java’s Institute for Pesantren and Diniyah Development (LPPD) at Unisma’s Postgraduate Program. The candidates advanced to the second selection stage, held at the Ali bin Abi Tholib Building, Universitas Islam Malang, on August 11, 2022.
The one day selection process tested candidates on two fronts. The first assessed their ability to read classical Islamic texts (kitab kuning), specifically Fathul Mu’in. The second evaluated the quality of each candidate’s dissertation proposal to gauge their academic readiness.
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All candidates for the doctoral program come from institutions rooted in East Java’s pesantren tradition, whether Islamic higher education institutions affiliated with pesantren or Ma’had Aly. Every candidate is already registered as a permanent faculty member holding a national lecturer registration number (NIDN) at their respective institution.
These 20 finalists emerged from an initial selection round that drew applicants from 19 pesantren scattered across East Java.
Dr. KH. Abdul Haris, M.Ag, testing candidates on their ability to read the Fathul Mu’in text
The classical text reading examination was conducted by Dr. KH. Abdul Haris, M.Ag, caretaker of Al-Bidayah Islamic Boarding School in Tegal Besar, Kaliwates, Jember, and Chairman of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) in Jember.
The dissertation proposal assessment was handled by Prof. Dr. Maskuri, M.Si, and Prof. H. M. Mas’ud Said, MM., PhD — a selection that aligns naturally with their roles as Unisma’s Rector and Postgraduate Director, respectively. Both examiners were appointed directly by East Java LPPD Chairman Prof. Dr. Halim Soebahar.
Prof. Mas’ud evaluating a candidate’s dissertation proposal
The examination process was also monitored by LPPD’s team, led by Abdul Ghofur, S.Pd, and supported by Ahmad Rifa’i and Amir Mujianto. (AL/PPS)
