Universitas Indonesia (UI) once again hosted the 2025 Computer-Based Written Examination–National Selection Based on Test (UTBK-SNBT) which took place on April 23–30 and May 2–5, 2025. Together with partners Politeknik Negeri Jakarta (PNJ) and Politeknik Negeri Media Kreatif (Polimedia), UI provided 2,832 computer units to serve 55,213 participants. Among the tens of thousands of participants, 76 were participants with disabilities.
On Thursday, April 24, 12 blind participants received access to screen reader software—Non Visual Desktop Access (NVDA)—to take part in the UTBK which took place in Room 1105, Faculty of Computer Science (Fasilkom) Old Building, UI Depok Campus. One of the participants, Muhammad Abdurrohman—who is a student from Sekolah Khusus Islam Terpadu(SKh-IT)—expressed his positive impression after taking part in the UTBK at UI.
“I’m happy and nervous, because this is my first time taking the UTBK. However, I feel comfortable because UI provides UTBK access for blind people like me,” said Abdurrohman. He admitted that he chose the UI UTBK Center because the facilities provided are friendly for people with disabilities, especially the blind. Recommendations from the school and UI’s reputation as an inclusive institution are strong reasons behind his choice. “Here, people with visual impairments can access the UTBK. The school also recommends the UI UTBK center because it is friendly for people with disabilities,” he explained.
According to him, the facilities at UI are very supportive of participants with disabilities. The UTBK committee is considered responsive and cares about the needs of participants with disabilities. In addition to carrying out their duties as exam supervisors, the committee is also ready to provide assistance if blind participants need to leave the room, for example, to go to the toilet or access health facilities. In fact, before the exam was over, officers were already on standby outside the exam room to help participants with disabilities leave the room and meet their families or guardians who were waiting outside.
Although he did not experience major challenges during the UTBK preparation, Abdurrohman admitted that he had undergone intensive training with teachers at his school before the exam. He studied diligently before the UTBK took place with the motivation to be accepted in his chosen major, namely Studi Pendidikan Khusus (Special Education Study Program), or PKh, at a university in Jakarta, so that in the future, he could fight for education for fellow people with disabilities.
In order to support disabled participants in the implementation of the UTBK, UI has made various preparations since the registration stage, including the integration of deaf and mute disability data into the system. In addition, the location of the disabled exam such as Building C of the Health Sciences Cluster is also equipped with lifts and other disability-friendly facilities. Through this step, UI strives to organize an inclusive and equitable UTBK, not only from the provision of physical facilities that are friendly to the disabled, but also the readiness of human resources to create a safe and comfortable exam experience for all participants.
In the future, Abdurrohman hopes that UI can continue to improve accessibility, one of which is by adding paving blocks or special guide paths for the blind on campus. “With this easy access, hopefully the disabled can continue to uphold themselves even though they have limitations in seeking knowledge,” he said.
