Indonesian pesantren-affiliated higher education: universal Islamic values to develop locally engaged but globally oriented multilingual graduates

Abstract

ABSTRACT Although Indonesian higher education institutions affiliated with pesantrens (Islamic boarding schools) have long been established and influenced the national education system, how these pesantren-affiliated higher education institutions (PaHEIs) may have contributed to the development of quality human resources in the predominantly Muslim country remains less known. This ethnography study explores the contribution of a PaHEI in Ponorogo, East Java, Indonesia, in preparing quality Indonesian human resources. Framed by ‘post-secular turn’ and universal Islamic values, document analysis, observations, and semi-structured interviews with top university management, faculty members, and students reveal how this institution has combined knowledge production and universal Islamic values to negotiate the negative stereotype of religious institutions by strategically merging secular and religious competencies as a complimentary dialogue to nurture multilingual and open-minded graduates with global orientation whilst intensively engaged in community volunteerism. The study uncovers some philosophical values and practices of pesantren in preparing quality human resources.