USAID PRESTASI-3 Scholarship Program Semi-Annual Performance Report

The program aims to improve the performance and leadership skills of Indonesian professionals, which will help promote development in Indonesia and achieve the Mission's Development Objectives under the 2014-2018 Country Development Cooperation Strategy. The program provides training and technical services required to strengthen and expand the base of skilled, high-performing professionals and institutions in Indonesia's public and private sectors. PRESTASI-3 works closely with the Education Office and all Mission Technical Teams to identify sectors within Indonesian partner organizations where expertise is required for activities and programs to achieve Government of Indonesia (GOI) and USAID objectives. The major expected outcomes from the implementation of PRESTASI-3 are to create an expanded cadre of skilled leaders and managers who can disseminate new knowledge and skills within priority sectors and advance key development objectives. The program also aims to develop new and advanced management skills, technical capacity, and knowledge within targeted public/private institutions and GOI ministries, which will encourage more efficient, transparent, and accountable practices across the assisted sectors. Activities that support the achievement of the PRESTASI-3 outcomes fall into four primary components: long-term training, short-term training, technical assistance, and post-training program support. The long-term training component involves graduate programs in the United States, with Cohort-1 awardees starting their graduate programs in August and September 2016. However, two awardees from Cohort-1 did not improve their TOEFL iBT scores despite additional pre-academic training, indicating that additional PAT does not guarantee an increase in test scores or admission to a U.S. university. The placement of Cohort-1 awardees was challenging, with letters of admission from some universities in the United States arriving as late as July 2016. However, all but three awardees of Cohort-1 departed for their graduate programs in August and September 2016. Awardee A was placed at the University of Georgia, Awardee B deferred her studies due to pregnancy, and Awardee C was approved to change the venue of study from the United States to Indonesia. The PRESTASI-3 team noted that USAID's willingness to provide extra funds and effort to keep its awardees in the scholarship program was considered an extraordinarily positive gesture that underscored USAID's investment in the awardees as individuals. This unique feature of USAID PRESTASI is appreciated by its participants.