COMM @ BINUS SENAYAN offers an alternative option to Skripsi (undergraduate thesis)
Did you know, if you study at Communication, Binus International (Binus@Senayan), you do not have to write a SKRIPSI (undergraduate thesis).
Usually, final year students at universities in Indonesia are required to write a SKRIPSI for graduation requirement.
A different approach is taken by Binus University through its Research and Technology Transfer Office (RTTO) for allowing students to choose between writing a Skripsi, doing a final-year project, or writing a scholarly article for Scopus-indexed publications.
Communication of Binus International campus takes the opportunity to offer two modes of thesis: conventional thesis (skripsi) and thesis by publication (scholarly article).
The Thesis by Publication (TbP) refers to the fulfilment of final-year project through doing research and writing the report in the form of a scholarly article to be published in a reputable international journal.
The publication of the scholarly article must follow the following indicators:
- The article is written based on scientific and ethical academic methods.
- The article is written in accordance with the format and language as stipulated by the targeted journal or international conference.
- The article is submitted and published in a journal or a conference proceeding managed by a well-known publisher or a credible university and is indexed by Scopus.
- The published article must be indicated with DOI (Digital Object Identifier).
- The article can be traced online.
The two modes have been offered to final year students since even semester 2021.
Batch 2021 successfully produced 4 articles which were submitted to journals and international conferences.
One of the article entitled “Papua and the public: News framing of the 2019 Asrama Papua conflict” was written by Annisa Putri Hapsa and accepted for publication in the Te Koa Koa: Pacific Journalism Review.
Another article was presented in the International Conference of Biospheric Harmony Advanced Research (ICOBAR) 2021. With the title “News consumption behaviours of Jakarta youth during the COVID-19 pandemic,” the article which was written by Hizkia Kenya was published in the AIP Conference Proceedings.
The success stories from the batch 2021 inspire students of batch 2022 to choose thesis by publication mode.
Unfortunately, all 8 students who selected the mode failed to get their paper accepted in reputable journals. The students submitted their paper in these Scopus-indexed journals:
- Journal of Communications
- Fudan Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences
- Global Media and Communication
- Journal of Consumer Marketing
- Journal of Creative Communications
- Indian Journal of Marketing
In 2023, only two students took the challenge to write a scholarly paper for their thesis. One student, Timotius Ariel Tandra successfully presented his research paper entitled “Cultural Dimensions and Intercultural User Interface Design (IUID) in a Learning Management System: Indonesian and International Student Perspectives” in the International Conference of Biospheric Harmony Advanced Research (ICOBAR) on 27 June 2023.
Writing a scholarly paper is a good exercise for students to be involved in a wider world research community.
“Participating in the thesis by publication track has been an enriching and learning experience throughout my academic career. Though stressful at times, I appreciated the fact that I was able to create a thesis that could provide further insight for Binus University’s e-learning services.”
“Furthermore, I was very grateful to be accepted by ICOBAR to present my paper for my very first (though virtual) conference! The experience was nerve-wracking and I was sweating bullets whilst waiting for my turn but had a smile on my face the entire time. In the end, I felt that it was a very great academic experience, and that being able to write a thesis to be published in a conference alongside my supervisor remains as one of my proudest accomplishments,” Timotius Ariel Tandra.
By offering students to write a scholarly paper for publication, it challenges them to produce high-impact research and exercise their writing skills.
Communication Program of Binus University International always uses the cutting-edge approaches to provide students with the best learning experience.
Contributor: Lily El Ferawati