Kampus Merdeka is a policy by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, aimed at encouraging students to master various skills useful for entering the workforce and preparing for future careers. One of the programs offered by Kampus Merdeka is the Certified Internship and Independent Study Program (MSIB). Rizka Ismi Prastiwi, a Mathematics student at Universitas Airlangga, participated in a Kampus Merdeka internship at PT Hacktivate Teknologi Indonesia (Hacktiv8).
Rizka began her internship with a one-month short bootcamp in Digital Marketing at Hacktiv8. This program consisted of 10 sessions held every Monday and Thursday, each lasting 3 hours from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM WIB. Conducted via Google Meet, the sessions were guided by Nelson Simbolon, a Digital Marketing Instructor at Hacktiv8. Each session included quizzes, challenges, assignments, and summaries that participants had to submit via Google Classroom. Following the training, the internship continued with a placement at hiring partners for approximately 5 months, from Monday to Friday, with flexible working hours totaling 8 hours per day.
In an interview, Rizka stated, “One of the tasks for Digital Marketing interns is to create simple web content and optimize simple web pages using WordPress as the Content Management System (CMS), Local as the free hosting, and Elementor as a plugin.” The creation of these simple websites was based on a business canvas developed by the interns, allowing them to create either fictional or real business models. The internship aimed to provide insights into the digital marketing world, focusing on strategies and activities as social media specialists, such as managing social media accounts. This activity also supported the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all.
Another task for interns was to conduct independent market research to understand the market potential and the potential of their business’s products or services. Interns were also expected to use marketing platforms like Facebook Ads and Instagram Ads optimally to efficiently reach their target markets. Additionally, they needed to be able to use search engine platforms and optimize web pages for better search engine visibility, as well as integrate various marketing platforms and digital assets to build an effective marketing journey.
After participating in the MBKM program, Rizka hopes that the implementation of the MSIB program can be further improved in several aspects to enhance the program’s smooth execution. She also suggested that the final project during the Digital Marketing short bootcamp be changed to a digital ad, specifically Facebook Ads with affordable costs. This adjustment would allow interns to apply the knowledge gained, as the bootcamp’s majority focus was on Facebook Ads.
