From Monday, July 21 to Thursday, July 24, 2025, Dr. Hwang Who Young, a lecturer from the Korean Language and Culture Study Program (BKK), Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), served as an interpreter in the KRIVET (Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training) project at several Christian vocational high schools (SMK) in Klaten. This project is a consulting program connecting top vocational high schools in Korea with several schools in Klaten.
The five-day event was held over four days at Tjokro Hotel and one day at each participating school. In addition to Dr. Hwang, another lecturer from the program, Febriani Elfrida Tritahtarini, S.S., M.A., also worked as an interpreter for four days. On the day of the school visits, Sri Wahyuningsih, S.S., M.A., and Alfiana Amrin Rosyadi, S.S., M.A., joined the interpreting team. The schools involved included SMKK 1, SMKK 2, SMKK 3, and SMKK 5 Klaten.
The interpreting work was highly specific and presented a considerable degree of difficulty, as it involved discussions about curriculum improvements and reforms in various vocational fields such as automotive engineering, healthcare, car body painting and maintenance, and nursing. A particularly challenging task for Dr. Hwang as the lead interpreter was translating Bible verses into two languages during the opening and closing ceremonies of each session.
The involvement of BKK UGM lecturers in this project demonstrates the department’s active and trusted human resources in professional settings. Furthermore, this activity not only bridges communication between Korean representatives and Indonesian vocational schools but also opens opportunities for future collaboration between the study program and secondary education institutions.
