SERDANG, 14 July 2026 - The Arabic Language Education Study Program of the Faculty of Language and Literature Education (FPBS), Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia (UPI), has taken a concrete step to expand its global network. This effort was carried out through a direct visit to explore international academic cooperation with the Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), on Tuesday (14/7).
The important meeting, which took place at the UPM campus in Malaysia, was attended directly by the leadership of the Arabic Language Education Study Program at FPBS UPI. The UPI delegation was led by the Head of the Study Program, Dr. Asep Sopian, M.Ag., accompanied by the Program Secretary, Dr. Rinaldi Supriadi, M.Pd., the Head of the Program Quality Assurance Cluster, Hikmah Maulani, M.Pd., and lecturer representative Farhan Fuadi, M.Pd.
Meanwhile, UPM warmly welcomed the initiative through the presence of the Head of the Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication, Prof. Madya. Dr. Abd Rauf Hassan. Also present were the Program Coordinator for the Bachelor of Arts (Arabic Language) with Honours program and Senior Lecturer in UPM’s Department of Foreign Languages, Dr. Pabiyah Hajimaming.
In his remarks, the Head of UPI’s Arabic Language Education Study Program, Dr. Asep Sopian, M.Ag., conveyed the main objective of this cross-border visit.
“The purpose of UPI’s visit to UPM is to explore cooperation with UPM through several activities,” said Dr. Asep Sopian.
In line with that statement, the Secretary of UPI’s Arabic Language Education Study Program, Dr. Rinaldi Supriadi, M.Pd., added that the collaboration is expected to create a tangible impact for both institutions, particularly in the development of globally oriented academic quality.
“We hope this initial exploration will become a bridge for lecturers and students to exchange academic ideas, undertake relevant collaborative research, and enrich learning experiences at the international level,” added Dr. Rinaldi.
UPI’s collaboration initiative was also received very positively by UPM. The Head of the Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication at UPM, Prof. Madya. Dr. Abd Rauf Hassan, stated his institution’s readiness to follow up the meeting at a more formal stage.
“We are pleased to welcome this exploratory initiative. We hope that this initial program can continue toward an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding), MoA (Memorandum of Agreement), and IA (Implementation Agreement),” said Dr. Abd Rauf.
The proposed program plan includes four main areas of cooperation:
- Research Cooperation: Joint research collaboration, including the writing of scholarly articles together (joint publication).
- International Conferences: Active participation in international-scale scientific conferences.
- Exchange of Academic Examiners: The exchange of thesis and/or dissertation examiners to improve the quality of academic evaluation for postgraduate students.
- Community Service (PkM): The implementation of collaborative community service programs that generate a public impact.
This face-to-face meeting at UPM is expected to become a strong starting point for building an excellent and inclusive academic ecosystem in Southeast Asia through close synergy between UPI and UPM.