Angga Dito Fauzi
Departemen Fisika Universitas Airlangga always finds ways to support university programs. After engaging in real collaborations with world researchers and having international community service programs, the Physics Department is now internationalizing two courses in the Physics undergraduate program.
UNAIR’s main program is currently focused on maintaining its reputation as the 369th ranked university in the world according to QS. Although QS rankings may be nuanced, they undoubtedly summarize several undeniable facts. These facts include UNAIR’s proficient teaching processes. UNAIR offers many international classes, but their current quantity is insufficient to maintain the 369th ranking. This is where the Physics Department steps in, by internationalizing two courses in the Physics undergraduate program.
One of UNAIR’s programs is the AGE Joint Class. Coordinated by Airlangga Global Engagement under the leadership of Dr. Iman Harymawan, this program catalyzes study programs at UNAIR to hold joint classes with partner universities abroad. The Physics Department proposed not only joint classes but also hosting joint classes with three universities: Universiti Tekonologi Malaysia (UTM, ranked 191st globally, 38th in Asia) and Institut Teknologi Sumatera (Itera, Lampung). While collaborating with UTM for internationalization, collaborating with ITERA is part of the Physics Department’s efforts to support the government’s Independent Learning – Independent Campus program.
The Physics Department leveraged the expertise of their staff in quantum mechanics-based computation to organize this AGE Joint Class, led by Dr. Febdian Rusydi. They opened two classes to host lectures for students from UTM and ITERA: Quantum Mechanics of Many-Body Systems (2 credits) and Material Computation (3 credits). Both classes are elective lectures from the Theoretical Physics Research Group, one of the expertise groups in the Physics Department. The total number of registered students is 15: seven from UNAIR, two from ITERA, five from UTM, and one from BRAC Bangladesh. As hosts, the Physics Department provided facilities for participants, including access to Gaussian 16 devices and the Quantum Engineering Research Center cluster computers.
The first meeting of these classes took place on Sunday, September 11, 2022, at 9:00 AM WIB. This meeting was delayed due to differences in academic calendars between UNAIR, ITERA, and UTM. While official lectures had yet to begin, participants had already started self-studying through the UNAIR E-learning platform.
Dr. Wun F. Mark-Lee, a guest lecturer from UTM, expressed during the discussion session his hope that UTM students could participate in international programs organized by AGE. Dr. Mark acknowledged the importance of quantum mechanics-based computational chemistry in experiments but noted there are still few experts in this field.
Dr. Vera Khoirunisa, a guest lecturer from ITERA who is also an alumna of the UNAIR Physics undergraduate program, prepared her students to come to UNAIR physically. She hoped that UNAIR would offer scholarship programs to help ITERA students who wish to study at UNAIR.
Dr. Herri Trilaksana, Chair of the Physics Department, who was simultaneously leading Community Service in Trenggalek Regency, expressed gratitude for the Physics undergraduate program receiving the AGE Joint Class grant. This program helps brand the Physics undergraduate program. He plans to internationalize other courses because it is also highly beneficial for Physics undergraduate students themselves.
