UNDIP, Semarang (6/2) – The Directorate of Students and Alumni of Universitas Diponegoro (UNDIP) held a “Workshop on the Student Self-Reinforcement and Character Program” on Friday (February 6, 2026) at the 3rd Floor Hall of the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (FISIP) UNDIP, Tembalang. The activity that took place at 08.00-16.00 Western Indonesia Time was attended by around 70 participants consisting of faculty leaders, head and secretaries of the study program, as well as the UNDIP Character Education (Pendikar) task force team.
The workshop carries the tagline “Accomplish COMPLETE (Communicator, Professional, Leader, Entrepreneur, Thinker, and Educator) Competence” as an effort to strengthen the character and readiness of UNDIP students in facing the challenges of the academic world and the increasingly dynamic world of work, especially in the era of artificial intelligence (AI). The activity was officially opened by Dr. Ir. Abdul Syakur, S.T., M.T., IPU, Deputy Director of Student Services and UNDIP Alumni. In his speech, he emphasized the importance of strengthening communication and academic assistance for students so that there is no misunderstanding of information that could potentially developed into an issue in the community.
“If the student’s problem is not quickly responded and clarified, information that is not necessarily true can grow wildly. Therefore, study programs, faculties, and related units must be the vanguard in accompanying students and ensuring the flow of communication runs well,” said Dr. Abdul Syakur. He added that UNDIP has designed COMPLETE competence as the foundation of graduates so that they not only excel academically, but also have a strong professional character, leadership, and entrepreneurial spirit.
This workshop presents two main speakers, namely Annastasia Ediati, S.Psi., M.Sc., Ph.D., Psikolog, Head of Consulting Services, Disability, Discipline Enforcement Unit (UPT LKDPDEM), and UNDIP Student Ethics, as well as Ir. Daud Samsudewa, S.Pt., M.Si., Ph.D., IPM.
In her presentation titled “Gen Z and Its Problems in the AI Era”, Annastasia Ediati, Ph.D., said that the character education program that has been running for more than two decades needs to be reformulated into a self-emphasis and character focused programs for students that are more relevant to the real conditions of students and the working world demands. Evaluation shows that the old approach tends to be top-down, unthoroughly, and less effective, while the challenges of current students condition are increasingly complex.
She highlighted the increasing academic pressure, the influence of social media and the fear of missing out (FOMO) phenomenon, as well as mental health issues. Based on various findings, around 42 percent of students reported experiencing anxiety or depression, plus financial stress and digital fatigue due to excessive online exposure. “The industrial world actually emphasizes soft skills such as responsibility, adaptability, integrity, and self-study attitude. Hard skills can be learned quickly, including through technology and AI, but character and mental toughness require a structured and sustainable process,” explained Annastasia, Ph.D.
Meanwhile, Daud Samsudewa, Ph.D., in his “Soft Skills Trends in the Artificial Intelligence Era” topic emphasized that soft skills are the main capital that needs to be strengthened through the higher education process. “Lectures not only provide academic lectures, but also form soft skills. The challenge is to produce graduates who are adaptive, creative, problem solver, teamwork, communicative, have leadership, work ethics, and time management,” he said.
According to Daud Samsudewa, Ph.D., the transformation of education in the AI era is not just a curriculum change, but an integration between hard skills and soft skills to produce alumni leaders with integrity. UNDIP values that are oriented towards integrity need to be internalized consistently in the entire education process in order to produce complete and competitive graduates.
Besides presentation of the material, this program is also filled with group discussions, evaluation of the implementation of the previous Pendikar Program, as well as the presentation of the discussion results from each group. The results of the discussion are expected to be topic for policy formulation and the development of self-reinforcement programs and the character of UNDIP students that are more contextual and sustainable. Through this workshop, UNDIP emphasized its commitment to build an academic environment that not only excels in achievement, but also upholds the value of character, integrity, and concern for the well-being of students. (Public Communication/UNDIP/Hani & As3)