Schools & Education

Early childhood

Formal education is not compulsory before age five; most who attend anything go to privately run nurseries, often franchises of Western brands. From about five, children move into Taman Kanak-kanak (TK, kindergarten), split into Class A and Class B. TK remains overwhelmingly private: of 96,638 kindergartens nationwide in 2024/2025, 93 per cent are privately run.

Elementary School

Sekolah Dasar (SD) covers ages 7 to 12, six years, and is compulsory. Public schools dominate here: of 149,512 SD nationwide, 87 per cent are government-run.

Middle School

Sekolah Menengah Pertama (SMP) runs three years, ages 13 to 15, and is likewise compulsory. Indonesia has roughly 43,000 SMP, split 56 per cent public to 44 per cent private.

Senior High School

Indonesians no longer need only nine years of schooling. National policy now mandates twelve years of compulsory education through Sekolah Menengah Atas (SMA) or its vocational equivalent, SMK, and government is extending this further to thirteen years by adding a compulsory pre-school year, under Presidential Regulation No. 3 of 2026. Around 14,700 SMA now operate nationally, split almost evenly between public and private.

Tertiary education

Graduates of SMA or SMK may proceed to university.

Foreign residents' children

Foreign nationals cannot enrol in standard Indonesian schools; their children attend Satuan Pendidikan Kerjasama (SPK) schools, the official category covering IB, Cambridge and other foreign-curriculum institutions in Jakarta, Bali and other major cities. Enrolment normally requires a Student KITAS for the child, or a Dependent KITAS tied to a parent's own permit. For current visa requirements, consult Okusi Associates.

Contributor: Jakartass

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