Tirtawening is a PhD candidate at the UNSW Faculty of Law & Justice and a lecturer at the Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia. In this post, she reflects on her path to socio-legal studies and the Tri Dharma academic workload in Indonesia.

Please introduce your academic role and your faculty. How does your law school and university fit in the higher education landscape in your country?

I’ve worked as a permanent lecturer at the Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia (FHUI), since 2017, but my journey here began in 2009 as a teaching assistant (which is common in Indonesia). FHUI, located in Depok and Jakarta, is the oldest law faculty in the country and celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2024. Universitas Indonesia is a state-owned legal entity university — which means we are not fully “public” in the traditional sense. We receive some government funding, but the majority of our budget is generated from our own resources. FHUI has a reputation as one of the most competitive law schools for students to get into, with rigorous admissions, a strong academic culture, and an extensive alumni network that spans government ministries, law firms, courts, corporations, human rights organizations, and more.

Tell us about the student body at your institution. How would you describe a typical law student in terms of their background? Do they have a common career path?

The students at the Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia, come from quite diverse backgrounds. Many are from urban areas, especially Jakarta, but we also have students from smaller towns and rural regions across Indonesia. We also have an international program that attracts students from other countries. Since Universitas Indonesia is one of the top universities in the country, admission is highly competitive, so students generally have strong academic records and often come from families that place a high value on education. Students’ socio-economic backgrounds vary widely — some students come from very privileged families, including second- or third-generation lawyers or public officials, while others come from more modest means and are supported by scholarships.

Regarding career paths, many graduates aim for prestigious legal roles, such as lawyers at top-tier law firms, in-house counsel at major companies, or positions in government ministries. Interestingly, becoming a judge or prosecutor is less attractive to students. Increasingly, students are exploring less traditional legal careers, particularly in policymaking, human rights, and socio-legal research.

Why did you decide to become an academic and why you decided to specialise in law and society?

At first, I did not  set out to become an academic. When I started law school, my big dream was to be a diplomat, travelling the world, representing Indonesia. But then I took my first few classes in international law and realised it just was not for me. What really caught my attention were the “law and society” courses such as legal anthropology, gender and law, sociology of law, and social welfare law. I loved how these subjects looked beyond the black-and-white of legislation and explored how law actually works in people’s everyday lives. Back then, I chose the Law, Society and Development Program. I liked its non-doctrinal approach, which combines social realities with the study of law. Before I graduated, I was already involved in research projects with my lecturers. That experience pulled me in deeper.

After graduation, I became a teaching assistant in the Law, Society, and Development Program. However, it took me a while to become a permanent lecturer. In the meantime, I worked as a researcher at the university’s Women and Gender Studies program, focusing on access to justice issues for women. I loved going into communities to conduct field research — seeing how law operates in real life — rather than doing purely doctrinal work. Now, as a lecturer, I teach courses like Gender and Law, Legal Anthropology, Law and Society, and Sociolegal Research Methods, where I can share my research experiences and connect them with the theories we discuss in class.

What have been the key influences on your teaching practises?

I have been fortunate to have wonderful mentors in the Law, Society, and Development Program. They are not only experts in their fields but also incredibly kind and wise. They treat students with respect and genuine care, and that has deeply influenced the way I teach. Many of them are women, so I think of them as my “academic mothers.” From one mentor, I learned the importance of keeping up with new developments in the field and the art of good academic writing. From others, I learned how to engage with students and communities with empathy and understanding. All of these lessons have shaped the kind of lecturer I strive to be today.

Is academia a desirable profession, and is it possible to live on an academic salary from your institution alone? How would you describe the workload and what takes up most of your time and effort?

In Indonesia, lecturers follow the Tri Dharma principle mandated by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology. Tri Dharma is derived from Sanskrit, which means three obligations and for lecturers, the obligation is a combination of teaching, research, and community service. Teaching takes up the most time, as we have to teach every semester, though the number of classes varies. In the odd semester (August–December), my teaching load is heavier, while in the even semester (February–June), I have fewer classes. Ideally, this lighter semester would give me more time for research or community service. However, in Indonesia, funding for these activities usually comes through in the middle of the year, which means the work ends up happening in the second half — right when teaching ramps up again. Cue a lot of juggling.

On top of Tri Dharma, many lecturers also take on managerial roles, such as becoming staff or managers of units within the Faculty of Law. In some units, the workload is heavy and eats into research time. This can make it challenging to publish, even though publications are essential for meeting performance requirements and for promotion.

As for salary — it is “enough,” but just enough, especially if it is your only income. Living costs in Jakarta are high, so it can feel tight. Many lecturers take on consultancy work to supplement their income, which, of course, adds another layer to an already busy workload.

What do you most enjoy about being an academic?

Despite the heavy workload relatively modest income, I know in my heart that I would rather be a lecturer than a lawyer, and even more than a diplomat, which I once dreamed of becoming. Being a lecturer allows me to not just teach in the classrooms but also to engage with communities through research and community development works. This has given me the opportunity to travel to different parts of Indonesia, with its rich multicultural diversity, and to learn from those experiences. As a result, my teaching becomes more vibrant, enriched by the insights and findings I bring back from the field.

Image: Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia, law.ui.ac.id. Reproduced with permission.