Indonesia Strengthens Student Talent Development through Research Olympiad

RRI.CO.ID, Tanggaerang - Indonesia’s Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, through the National Achievement Center (Puspresnas), is strengthening student talent development in research and innovation through the 2026 National Indonesian Student Research Olympiad (OPSI). The closing ceremony and medal awards for OPSI 2026 highlighted the importance of continuing talent development, with achievement serving as a gateway to learning, competency development, and personal growth.

A total of 250 research and innovation talents from primary and secondary education took part in the OPSI 2026 final, held from September 24 to 30, 2026. Special Staff to the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education for Strengthening Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and Teacher Competencies, Maila Dinia Husni Rahiem, said OPSI provides students with a platform to develop their talents while supporting a broader student talent management ecosystem.

“The government wants to ensure that OPSI talents have sustainable opportunities to grow through recognition and broad participation, including support from universities and industry,” Maila said while closing OPSI in South Tangerang on Tuesday (September 29). She emphasized that OPSI is not solely about winning medals, but also about providing valuable experiences for students to build character and develop their capacity as young researchers.

“Today’s achievement is the gateway to the next opportunity — an opportunity to learn further, develop talent, gain new experiences, compete at higher levels, and, for some talents, represent Indonesia on the international stage and take part in the selection process for the Indonesian Talent Scholarship,” Maila explained. According to her, the experience gained through OPSI can become an important foundation for students’ continued academic and personal development.

Meanwhile, Head of the National Achievement Center, Maria Veronica Irene Herdjiono, said OPSI differs from competitions that primarily require students to answer test questions. “In other competitions, children are asked to answer questions, but in research, they are not simply answering questions; they are thinking about how to solve a problem,” Irene said.

The OPSI 2026 final therefore featured not only research presentations but also an exhibition of research projects and the Research Idea Challenge (RICh), which challenged participants to develop solutions to problems spontaneously within a limited time. Talent development was also strengthened through the Collaborative Bina Talenta Indonesia (BTI) program, which focused on six competencies known as the 6Cs: Critical Thinking, Creativity, Collaboration, Communication, Character, and Citizenship.

Irene said students from 125 teams were given opportunities to collaborate, communicate, and solve problems together to build stronger connections among participants. “Hopefully, in the future, they can build networks that support their development as emerging research talents,” she said.

The growing number of OPSI applicants also reflects increasing student participation in research and innovation, with 39,300 applicants recorded in 2026, an increase of around 47 percent from 26,723 applicants in 2025. The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education also collaborated with the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) to strengthen research methodology, ethical clearance, and basic research principles among OPSI participants.

OPSI 2026 brought together finalists from junior and senior secondary education across fields including Natural Sciences, Applied Sciences, Social Sciences, Applied Physics and Engineering, Social Sciences and Humanities, and Mathematics, Science, and Technology. Medalists received development grants ranging from 5 million to 25 million rupiah, while high-achieving students also had opportunities to join international competition preparation programs, the Bina Talenta Indonesia program, Indonesian Talent Scholarship selection, and achievement-based university admission pathways in Indonesia and abroad.