Afifah Puspitaliza and Lisa Utari, two students of FE UNY, are studying for one semester at Kasetsart University, Thailand, in this even semester. Although the classes are still held online, both of them have been in Bangkok since the end of last year. Afifah, or Ifah, and Lisa are participants of the One Semester Scholarship Program for ASEAN Students: In Celebration of the 80th Anniversary of Kasetsart University (OSSPAS). This program gives them the opportunity to take 3 courses for one semester until May 17, 2022.

Both students enjoy their academic life on campus. Ifah was amazed by the lectures there. "It's fun, comfortable, the campus is cool, and student services are fast and easy," she said.

Ifah, majoring in Accounting, wishes to travel the world. Therefore, participating in such program becomes her first step and her motivation, to hone her soft skills and hard skills, to improve knowledge and experience, and to learn to adapt in other countries.

In line with Ifah, Lisa has also longed to study abroad because she believes in the various educational benefits and experiences gained. "Studying and living abroad in my opinion are the right ways to develop myself into a more independent and adaptable person. Apart from that, of course, this valuable experience is very useful to increase my knowledge and broaden my views. Not only about the educational system, but also about the way of life, friendship, and much more," explained Lisa.

Even though they are still in Southeast Asia, Ifah and Lisa feel the different languages, cultures, and lives that challenge them. "People here rarely speak English and the alphabetic system is also different," said Ifah. Lisa added, looking for halal food there also requires more effort. "(So far) I cook, before fasting I also cook, to save money," explained Lisa. They carry out their prayers and activities during Ramadan in Bangkok without difficulties. "It's just that we live in Bangkok, which is not a Muslim area, so we don't quite feel the vibes," explained Lisa.

Ifah invites FE UNY students not to stop trying if they want to study abroad. "Don't give up, keep improving your English. Boost your achievements, and don't hesitate to try," Ifah concluded. (fdhli)

The Faculty of Economics of UNY and the Faculty of Economics and Business ofJenderal Sudirman University (FEB Unsoed) met and discussed the possibility of cooperation in the academic field, especially in the implementation of MBKM Curriculum, last Friday (14/1). The event was attended by the deans of FE UNY and the head of the Internal Supervisory Unit of UNY, Abdullah Taman, M.Sc., Ak. Meanwhile, the Unsoed representative was led by the Dean of FEB Prof. Wiwiek Rabiatul Adawiyah, M.Sc., Ph.D. and accompanied by his staff.

Vice Dean for Academic Affairs and Cooperation of FE UNY, Prof. Setyabudi Indartono, Ph.D. said that in fact the collaboration with FEB Unsoed had been running indirectly through several joint ventures. "Hopefully with this meeting cooperation can be continued in a wider area," he explained.

Wiwiek revealed that this meeting is expected to provide several benefits for both parties. "For example, the exchange of lecturers is to improve the performance of lecturers outside the campus, either through international or regular classes. It could also be with student participation in classes which will later be used for credit earning for students. (fdhl)

Marketing is very crucial in a business. Through marketing, a business including MSMEs can increase sales of their products. One of the MSMEs in Indonesia, especially in Special Region of Yogyakarta, is the Krupuk Patilo MSME. Patilo is a superior product of processed food using cassava as the basic ingredient. Tepus Village of Gunungkidul Regency has a cassava 'patilo' snack industry center, namely the Women Farmers Group (KWT).

“There are not many patilo producers in the village who use e-commerce and social media for marketing. In addition, the packaging of the patilo still uses plain white plastic with various sizes depending on the request of customers," said Marni, one of the women producing patilos in Tepus Village, last Tuesday (16/3/2021). Rukino as Dukuh of Padukuhan Pakel, Tepus Village said, "the role of youth is needed in digital marketing because many patilo producers are old and not technology literate".

Reviewing these problems, UNY students from the Research and Reasoning Community Student Activity Unit (UKM KRISTAL) Faculty of Economics (FE) UNY support the development of Patilo SMEs through improving marketing methods. Having passed the Holistic Villages Development and Empowerment Program (PHP2D) from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology, they organized training and assistance in market segmentation, digital marketing, digital content, and packaging design to support the improvement of Patilo MSME marketing.

This activity was held in Padukuhan Pakel, Kalurahan Tepus, Kapanewon Tepus, Gunungkidul last August. These training and mentoring were provided to the local Women Farmers and the local Youth Organization. There is a need for cooperation between youth organizations and women farmer groups so they can reach a wider market segmentation. Through training and assistance in digital marketing, digital content, and packaging design for Karang Taruna, this program is expected to improve the marketing quality of Patilo SMEs so that they can increase sales and, consequently, the income of residents.

What could happen when two friends are so united in carrying out their activities? Ririn Susanti and Nurul Rusmavita, these two women were brought together since their first semester of studying at FE UNY, specifically the bachelor of accounting education. Their friendship led them to assignments, organizational meetings, and competitions in various regions.

They have shown high motivation to study before they became students. Nurul, a graduate of SMK N 1 Depok, Sleman, got a score of 10 in Mathematics in the Vocational National Examination. Meanwhile, Ririn, although she had to work for one year after graduated from Vocational High School, but her experience when participating in the Accounting Competition (LCCA) and her work as an accounting staff made this graduate of SMK N 1 Godean still motivated to prepare for the Joint Entrance Test for State Universities (SBMPTN) the following year.

Both of them have the same challenges when they want to continue their education. Ririn's father is only a farm laborer, while Nurul's father earns a living as a construction worker. Both pairs of parents had doubts that their children could continue their studies. But thanks to Bidikmisi, both of them could be accepted into the Accounting Education Study Program, FE UNY.

Ririn and Nurul met at UNY before they became students at FE UNY. When they were still in Vocational High School (SMK), they met several times in accounting competitions. Being in the same class, the brainy duo then formed a friendship. They both joined the Accounting Education Students Association (Hima Diksi).

Ririn said that when they became a competition committee at FE UNY, they received information that there was a competition on another campus. They took part in the competition as a team with the aim of only promoting the competition that they held themselves to other participants on the campus. Since then, they have achieved at least five achievements in various national accounting competitions during 3 years working together as a team.

The surprise emerged at the end of the study when they graduated simultaneously in the period of June 2021, with the exact same grade, which was 3.93. In response to this, both Nurul and Ririn said they were surprised. Ririn believes, this achievement is certainly God's Will. "If we find the right people to collaborate at the right time, it might lead to the right results," she said. (fdhl)