Overview
Table 1: Number of Indonesian Students in the United States by academic year.
| 2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 |
| 8,300 | 7,489 | 8,003 | 8,467 | 8,348 |
Source: Open Doors 2024
Indonesia is a dynamic and fast-growing market for international education. With over 283 million people, it is the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation and home to a rapidly expanding young population, with half of its citizens under 30 years old. This demographic shift, coupled with increasing household incomes and government investment in education, has fueled strong demand for secondary, higher, and vocational education opportunities.
Indonesia’s government mandates 12 years of compulsory education, divided into six years of elementary school, followed by three years each at the junior and senior secondary levels. The education sector is managed by the Ministry of Education (84% of schools) and the Ministry of Religious Affairs (16% of schools, including Islamic, Christian, and Catholic institutions) (https://www.bps.go.id). The country has an extensive school network with:
175,864 primary schools
62,549 junior secondary schools
39,130 senior secondary schools (SMA & SMK)
Most Indonesian students studying in the United States are self-funded or supported by government scholarships such as the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP), which is administered by the Ministry of Finance. LPDP has disbursed over 45,500 scholarships since its inception and manages an endowment of approximately IDR 139 trillion (USD $8.69 billion). New priorities include cost-sharing partnerships with foreign institutions, expanded short-term exchanges, and internship opportunities for youth and professionals.
Leading Sub-sectors
U.S. institutions are well-positioned in three segments:
Higher Education: Indonesian students consistently rank U.S. academic institutions as the highest in quality. The most popular majors include Business/Management, Engineering, Math & Computer Science, Physical/Life Sciences, Math & Computer Science, and Social Sciences. U.S. universities can grow their presence through dual-degree programs, articulation agreements (1+3, 2+2), and recruitment partnerships.
Vocational and Skills Training: Indonesia’s government is investing heavily in Sekolah Menengah Kejuruan (SMK) or vocational high schools, to address youth unemployment and labor skills gaps. President Prabowo committed $42 billion through his Asta Cita plan, including the construction of more than ten thousand new schools. In 2023–2024, over 5 million students were enrolled in 14,325 SMKs across the country. Opportunities exist for U.S. vocational institutions to co-develop curricula, offer skill certification programs, and support training-of-trainers initiatives.
Education Technology (EdTech): Indonesia’s EdTech market is rapidly expanding. Leading players such as Ruangguru, Zenius, Cakap, and Quipper serve millions of students with online learning platforms. However, infrastructure limitations in rural areas remain a challenge. U.S. companies offering scalable, affordable EdTech solutions have strong prospects, particularly in language learning, teacher training, and live content delivery.
Table 2: Top Five Academic Majors Chosen by Indonesian Students Studying in the U.S.
| Year | Business/ Management | Engineering | Math & Computer Science | Physical/Life Sciences | Social Sciences |
| 2019/2020 | 27.4% | 16.7% | 10% | 6.5% | 8.4% |
| 2020/2021 | 23.4% | 15.1% | 18.9% | 6.8% | 8.5%% |
| 2021/2022 | 24% | 19.1% | 12.5% | 7.1% | 8.8% |
| 2022/2023 | 24.9% | 16.8% | 12.2% | 8.1% | 10.6% |
| 2023/2024 | 23.5% | 14.2% | 13.3% | 7.7% | 11.2% |
Source: Open Doors 2024
Opportunities
A popular survey by a prominent Indonesian newspaper reveals that most students consider academic institutions in the United States to offer the highest quality education compared to those in other countries. Indonesian students consider U.S. institutions as offering the highest quality education globally, making the United States as a preferred study destination. U.S. universities and community colleges can increase their visibility in the Indonesian market by working with the U.S. Commercial Service office in Jakarta to promote their institution in-country and develop a network of well-qualified recruitment partners, such as education recruitment agents, high school counselors, potential partner universities, and government officials. U.S. education institutions should also consider participating in education fairs, such as the EducationUSA Fairs hosted by the U.S. Department of State. Educational consultants are highly valued by prospective Indonesian students and their families as they serve as convenient “one-stop shops” for school applications, and they help with visa processing, travel arrangements, and accommodations.
To compete with other countries that offer lower tuition fees, universities are participating in “1+1”, “1+3”, or “2+2” programs that enable students to apply credits from their years of study at a local university towards an undergraduate degree at a U.S. university. Studying at U.S. community colleges has become an increasingly popular option for Indonesian students, due to their affordability and pathways to bachelor’s degree programs.
Vocational schools have increasingly gained the interest of the Indonesian government. The Indonesian government is planning to improve the current vocational education system with multiple skill certificates, in which vocational school students can earn certificates after completing training courses in addition to their high school graduation diploma. In the 2023-2024 educational year, there were approximately 14,325 vocational schools in Indonesia. In the 2023-2024 educational year, there were about 5,066,424 students in the vocational schools (up 0.135% compared to 5,059.603 students last year).
The Indonesian government has also invited business leaders to play an expanded role in shaping the curriculum and setting skill standards relevant to the demands of the job market. These business representatives are expected to provide internship opportunities and on-site training programs for both students and teachers. There may be opportunities for U.S. vocational schools to partner with Indonesian vocational schools to support the development of curriculum and establish a presence in Indonesia. In addition, U.S. vocational schools may enjoy increasing appeal as opportunities to gain overseas education and job skills. Vocational schools offer three-year courses in technology and engineering, health, arts and crafts, tourism, ICT, agro-business and agro-technology, and business management. In the same academic year, there were about 337,306 teachers in the vocational schools.
The government supports study abroad by Indonesian students through the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education, abbreviated as LPDP (Lembaga Pengelola Dana Pendidikan), managed by the Ministry of Finance. LPDP provides full-ride scholarships and short-term exchange programs for all Indonesian citizen in partnership with the Ministry of Education and Culture, Ministry of Religious Affairs, and other government entities. LPDP has a vision to be the best regional fund management institution to prepare future leaders and encourage innovation for a prosperous, democratic, and just Indonesia.
The LPDP service program consists of scholarships, research funding, and fund management (investment). Since its inception in 2013 until December 2023, LPDP has awarded scholarships to 45,500 Indonesian students. Of these, 33,251 (73.1%) are pursuing master’s degrees; 10,035 (22.1%) are doctoral students; and 2,214 (4.9%) are specialist & subspecialist doctor students. In 2023, the Indonesian government allocated IDR 139 trillion Indonesian Rupiah for LPDP’s budget. This allocation reflects the government’s commitment to fostering a competitive workforce for Indonesia’s development goals. The United States ranks fourth among the top destinations for LPDP awardees overall, with 2,039 students, following the United Kingdom (5,735), Australia (3,457), and the Netherlands (2,235) as per LPDP’s 2023 annual report. LPDP is looking to expand its offering through cost-sharing programs with international universities, internship programs, and expanded short-term exchanges for students and young professionals.
Education Technology
Education technology (Ed Tech) is a growing industry in Indonesia. With a population of 283 million people, Indonesia has a large and diverse education market that is ripe for innovation and disruption.
Some of the key players in the Indonesian Ed Tech market include Ruangguru (an interactive e-learning platform for K-12 students), Cakap (a tutoring platform for language learning), Zenius Education (self-learning materials for K12 students), and Quipper (e-learning, coaching, tutoring and assessment services for K12 students) have grown during this time, but overall, the sector is still emerging. Additionally, new entrants like CoLearn, Pahamify and Sekolahmu are gaining traction by focusing on exam preparation and personalized learning experience.
A significant trend in 2024 is the increasing focus on teacher upskilling. Platforms such as GuruInovatif and Cakap are leading initiatives to enhance digital competencies among educators, addressing the need for improved digital literacy in teaching practices.
One of the challenges facing Ed Tech in Indonesia is the digital divide. While the country has a high internet penetration of 74.6%, with 143 million social media users reported in early January 2025, and a total of 356 million active cellular mobile connections, not all of these connections necessarily include internet access, as some may be limited to voice and SMS services. Ed Tech is also not accessible to all learners and Indonesia’s education system is not well-equipped for quickly scaling up online learning. Many students in rural areas lack connectivity and many lower-income students lack access to the devices needed to use ed tech tools.
Despite these challenges, the Indonesian Ed Tech market is expected to continue growing in the coming years. It faces bottlenecks that prevent from replicating the level of success seen in other technology sectors and in other countries, but the Government of Indonesia has made a commitment to investing in education and technology, and there is growing demand for high-quality, affordable education solutions.
Supply-side constraints on Ed Tech include:
- Difficult access to funding.
- High marginal costs, particularly to acquire and retain new customers.
- A shortage of qualified talent to develop and maintain products.
These are coupled with demand-side constraints on Ed Tech, including:
- A low willingness to pay from schools and parents.
- A lack of digital literacy, particularly on the part of education providers.
- Poor digital infrastructure, which limits connectivity in remote regions and slow download speeds across the country.
Events
- U.S. Commercial Service - Indonesia: https://trade.gov/indonesia
- U.S. Commercial Service Global Education Team: https://www.trade.gov/education-industry
- EducationUSA Indonesia: https://educationusa.state.gov/centers/educationusa-us-embassy-jakarta
- Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology: https://kemdiktisaintek.go.id/
- American Indonesian Exchange Foundation (AMINEF): https://www.aminef.or.id/
- Institute of International Education: https://opendoorsdata.org
- Indonesia Baik: https://indonesiabaik.id/
- Data Indonesia: https://dataindonesia.id
- Digital 2025 Indonesia: https://datareportal.com
Interested parties may contact Commercial Specialist Fidhiza Purisma at Fidhiza.Purisma@trade.gov