Honours

Can I take an ACICIS program as part of an Honours year?
Yes, a number of students have completed ACICIS programs and gained credit towards their Honours degrees. This, however, is at the discretion of the student’s home university.

The majority of Honours students have completed semester-long field study programs, whereby the student completes a single research project on a topic of their own choosing. These programs are largely self-guided and hence most suitable for Honours students. ACICIS therefore suggests that students interested in taking ACICIS as part of an Honours year look into the West Java Field Study Program or the East Java Field Study Program and discuss possible credit arrangements with their home university contact person well in advance of the application closing date.

Honours students have generally found that a semester in Indonesia has significantly enriched their studies and final dissertations. However, students must remember that an Honours year is very demanding. Therefore students who elect to take an ACICIS program as part of an Honours year must prepare adequately so as not to run themselves short of time. Foremost, their chosen topic for their field study and dissertation must be approved by ACICIS and their home university prior to their departure to Indonesia. Students must ascertain whether they are required to gain approval from their ‘home’ university’s ethics committee prior to undertaking fieldwork and commence any ethics approval process as early as possible. Secondly, ACICIS strongly advises Honours students to undertake preliminary research at their university library prior to departure for Indonesia. This will give students a better frame of reference when making fieldwork enquiries and allow them to access source materials that may be unavailable in Indonesia. Finally, Honours students are strongly advised to liaise regularly with their home university supervisor while in Indonesia to ensure that their studies ‘in-country’ remain relevant to the aims of their Honours year.