Field
Study in Malang
Field study can seem a daunting option. We asked some of our intrepid Malang
students to give us the benefit of their experience. A
big thanks to the following
students for sharing their thoughts with us.
- Carolyn Wight (Curtin University
of Technology, Western Australia)
- Alex Owens (Flinders University,
South Australia)
- Olivia Craze (Monash University,
Victoria)
1. Please describe your reactions to the experience of studying and living
in Malang
 Carolyn:
Having done Yogya for a semester, I fully recommend coming to Malang. I enjoyed
my time in Yogya, equally as much as Malang. There certainly are obvious differences
between the towns, the people and the universities and it is that reason why
I recommend coming here. That is, if you are going to spend a year in Indonesia,
why limit your experience in just one place? Try to experience all that Indonesia
has to offer. Fortunately, my studies also took me into several villages and
if you are able to do your studies in villages, DO IT! Experience it all!
Alex: Absolutely BRILLIANT! I was a bit nervous about coming to Malang
having read some negative comments, but after the first afternoon here soon
realised how good the semester was going to be. The weather is perfect, a lot
more comfortable than Yogya, the people are so friendly and genuinely happy
to meet a foreigner studying their language and culture: and best of all the
number of westerners in Malang is very few so your experience of Indonesia is
much more "real". I have had a ball here and know that I will always
come back to Malang!
Olivia: My experience of living in Malang was nothing short of perfect
(not to sound too enthusiastic)!! The Malang population are extremely friendly
and helpful - I never experienced any harrassment on the street apart from general
curiosity. I felt comfortable and safe in Malang and living here immersed in
the culture and language has been a "life enriching" experience. I
have enjoyed the experience thoroughly and I will be sorry to leave my Malang
life and friends. I will definitely return in the future and would recommend
spending time here to anyone.
2. Please describe your feelings about your ACICIS study program
in Malang
Carolyn: Your first four weeks at the university will seem a little
confusing. But my advice is, to avoid this confusion:
1. Establish your topic before coming or in the first two weeks.
2. Once you know your topic, search out the "dosen" who can help you.
3. Start to build up a rapport with your "pembina" in the first two
weeks, as your pembina along with the dosens help, will benefit your field study.
All in all, I have benefited greatly from the program because you are totally
independent, thus forced to work things out for yourself in order to get the
job done.
Alex: Doing the field study as part of my Honours year has been fantastic.
I have been given the opportunity to gather research that would have been unavailable
in Australia, while improving my Indonesian at the same time. The independence
the program gives you is huge - which also means that you are the one who has
to make it work. The first month of lectures got a little boring and frustrating
by the end - but as soon as you are out in the "field" - that is all
forgotten. Hard to get to know students on campus, and unless you join a club
there, you may feel like a bit of an alien.
Olivia: The field study program in Malang has been an enormous challenge
for me in terms of language, cultural experience and the actual field study
itself. There were times when everything seemed to hard, but in the end I would
rate it as one of the best experiences in my life. I found the program well
organized and the support there, if needed. The only aspect found frustrating
was perhaps the lecturer at the beginning of the semester too long. While this
was great for language skills and interesting, by the last week I really wanted
to concentrate on my field study.
3. Please describe your main extra-curricular activities (groups, clubs, kos,
friends, etc)
Carolyn:
1. Spending time with my kos family.
2. Going to "Dieng Plaza", "Mandala" and "Sarinah"
cinemas, to enjoy the latest movies;
3. Swimming pool near Uni, in an attempt to get fit. Recommend going
when there are no people and the water clean i.e. Friday between
11- 2 pm.
Alex: I joined the Tapak Suci club at UnMuh and my time in
Malang was so enjoyable because of it. The people in the club are
fantastic, they welcomed me as a "saudara" and they all
soon become my best friends. They all go out together, and as well
as training and hanging out in the club office, we had a "nature
training camp" at a beach south of Malang - a weekend I will
never forget! Otherwise, just sitting around with friends,talking,
singing, mucking around, etc…
Olivia: Hanging out with friends at Hotel Helios, always
great fun and they are soooo helpful.
- Movies at Mandala
- Tapak Suci but this fell by the wayside in May with the writing
of the report.
- Reading (for an escape and break from study).
- Emailing friends at home.
4. Please describe briefly the main steps you took in carrying out your field
study
Carolyn: My Studies took me out of Malang, to an Environmental Education
Centre i.e. Pusat Pendidikan Lingkungan Hidup at Seloliman Trawas. The following
were the steps I took.
(1) Fax an introduction letter, including information such as who you are,
what you need from them and most importantly "HOW YOU CAN HELP THEM"
e.g. teach English to students, help in various departments, etc. Furthermore,
on your fax, ask them to fax you back to confirm that you are able to conduct
your research there and who will be your contact person.
(2) On arrival, establish your contact and your accommodation. Options for accommodation
are usually in the villages. If you stay at the centre there usually is no guarantee
of accomodation.
(3) You will be expected to help the centre as they are helping you! My advice
is be aware of your purpose, which is to research , thus try to balance your
time there, with researching as well as assist the centre. DON'T LOSE SIGHT
of way you are there, as there are plenty of distractions.
(4) ENJOY AS I DID AND IT WILL REFLECT IN YOUR REPORT!
Alex:
- Changed my topic when arrived in Malang
- Worked out who my respondents were going to be and where I was going to find
them.
- Background research in UnMuh library and from articles, etc…
- Started interviewing, preparing questionnaires and talking to everyone to
get different opinions on my topic.
Olivia:
- Attending meetings between LBH and warga Kalibakar, observing the process
and gaining information by conducting informal interviews with the farmers.
- Discussing aspects of law and government economic policies with people who
work at LBH and Law lecturers at UnMuh.
- Collecting and reading newspaper articles on the Kalibakar case.
- Reading commentaries on land law in Indonesia.
- "Trying" to obtain information from BPN and Kantor PTPN XII, but
this was fruitless.
5. Please comment on how much how your study and extra-curricular activities
have helped your language skills
Carolyn: My language skills have improved immensely, but not only that,
my understanding of the culture and the people as well.
Alex: My field study helped develop a certain range of vocab and definitely
helped increase my ability to talk to people of different ages, different positions,
and different backgrounds. However, the advances I made with general vocabulary
and speaking Indonesian more naturally came from hanging out with friends and
listening to the way they use the language and then copying it. My speaking,
writing, reading, and listening skills have all increased noticeably over the
semester (at least to me anyway!)
Olivia: In terms of field study my language skills built up on a specific
area (i.e. land, law, etc) but I found that general words that I was using in
my field report crept into my everyday speaking. I also found that carrying
out the field study (i.e. reading, observing, etc) and then writing the report
helped with these. Extra-curricular activities helped with my confidence in
actually opening my month and trying to make myself understood. (I was the student
that sat at the back of class and never said a word, unless forced to!!) Also
my listening skills became a little better (although they are quite bad). Also
these activities helped with cultural understanding and in which context to
use certain words.
6. Malang Living - hints: Please gave 3 or 4 good hints about places to go
and things to do in Malang: e.g. a good eating place, haircut, gym, clothes
maker, doctor, etc
Carolyn: · good eating: Jl. Kawi, heaps of little restaurants,
looking for a good cheese and tomato sandwich go to "Amsterdam", or
warungs outside "Dieng Plaza" .·Good crème-bath: "Samudera"
(near Pak Habib's house), "Salon" near Hotel Helios, Jl. Pattimura)
· Tugu: for those times you feel like getting away from it or spoiling
yourself.
Alex:
· Warung Utama - just opposite the exit gate at campus - small but absolutely
delicious! If shut, most of the warungs in front of campus are great - go to
the one that is full!
· STMJ on Jalan Kawi. This is apparently the most well known STMJ warung
in Malang - someone will be able to take you there. Don't leave Indonesia without
trying an STMJ (susu, telur, madu, jahe).
· The Riche Hotel for massage. The people there are all blind and give
wonderful massages - about 2 hours, Rp10,000.
· Movies at Mandala or Dieng; Bale Barong for live music.
· Report bound-up at: Maestro at Jl. Raya Tidar 1B - very good, happy
with their service.
Olivia:
· For relaxation and escape, movies at Mandala. They have cheap Mondays
and the juice Bar across from the ticket office, sells the best juice in Malang.
· Mega Net (near Mitra dua) and Prima Net down from telecom are both
great places for using computer in general and internet (e-mail). Although apparently
more expensive than other warnets.
· Join the Tapak Suci club for exercise and meeting lots of friendly
people. Great for releasing any built up frustration.
· For great cap-cai, mie goreng and excellent nasi goreng, the kaki lima
across from Hotel Helios. If you are staying at the hotel Helios, ask for "dibungkus"
and they will deliver.
7. Accommodation - where did you live, how did you find it, and how much did
it cost? Do you recommend it?
Carolyn: Heard from a last semester student. It is on Jl. Tidar Selatan
No. 4. Great room, family doesn't bother only the occasional mosque calling
you (but it's not that bad), great family, felt always like part of the family.
Although they are very much into the Christian religion, they do respect you
if you are not. The cost was Rp200,000 (this may go up) a month.
Alex:
(1). Jl. Sukarno-Hatta 17, phone: 477-258, found it through a friend, Rp300,000
a month, brand new, own bathroom, doesn't' include washing. I had to move because
of stealing pembantus! - but they have since left so might be OK now, curfew
10pm - girls.
(2). Jl. Kerinci 7, phone: 571-874, found it by going around on a becak, Rp250,000
a month hot water, big room, included washing. This is a home stay, brilliant
family, no curfew- HIGHLY recommended! Can pay Rp100,000 extra per-month and
eat as much as you want (3 times a day), delicious food.
Olivia: I stayed at the Hotel Helios, which I loved, no curfew and Antok
and Agus lots of fun and extremely helpful. Cheap room (shared mandi) - Rp 450,000
per month, more expensive room with own mandi Rp825,000 per month. Although
more expensive than a kos I have had a wonderful time staying at this hotel.
I have also had a lot of language practise, as the guests are very friendly.
Antok and Agus have been great in testing my language skills and correcting
any mistakes. They have become great friends and I will be sorry to leave.
8. How much did the semester cost you?
Carolyn: Having no computer and living out of Malang for my field studies
as well as spending a couple of weeks in Bali, approximately: $3 - 4000.
Alex: After arriving in Indonesia I would have spent about $3,000 -
3,500, which included everything: travel, shopping, books, motorbike, etc…
Olivia:Approximately: $2,000, this included buying a motorbike, which
was later sold and the money used for travel at the end of the semester. Although
living in Malang was generally cheap, travelling around cost more. The $2,000
included treats like tea at the Tugu, cream bath, movies, etc…
9. Any other general comments on your Malang Program, particularly of use
in guiding future students?
Carolyn: Maybe if students have an opportunity to attend seminars, they
should think about doing it. This will benefit them as well as take away any
pre-seminars fears.
Alex:
~ After the meeting in Yogya, don't plan to be doing much more research - the
last 5 weeks absolutely fly and unexpected problems pop you - you will need
the time to write everything up and prepare for the seminar.
~ Concentrating on one topic for the whole semester can make you crazy…take
a holiday when you need one!
~ There is life aside from the field study. Do not underestimate the benefits
of just being a member of society and hanging out with friends.
~ Join a club on Campus so you get to meet some students at UnMuh.
(Please note that the information
contained in this page is the opinions and suggestions of students regarding
their experiences in Malang. They are in no way meant to officially endorse
any place mentioned and neither ACICIS, nor the students, should be held accountable
for any information contained herein.)
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