Professor Eligibility and National Competitiveness Amidst Academia

Indonesia's academic landscape is grappling with new regulations that significantly raise the bar for achieving professorial status. The "Peraturan Menteri Pendidikan Tinggi, Sains, dan Teknologi (Permendiktisaintek) 52 Tahun 2025" has introduced stricter requirements, leading many universities to identify "Profesor Eligible" – lecturers who meet general criteria but lack specific, high-impact publication mandates.

These specific requirements, detailed in Pasal 42 poin (g), necessitate at least two high-quality scientific publications or artistic works. For scientific publications, the criteria are stringent, demanding a minimum SCImago Journal Rank (SJR) of Q2 (above 0.25) or an Impact Factor (IF) of over 0.05 for one publication, and Q3 (above 0.2) for another, published in internationally reputable journals. These publications must be as the first or corresponding author, and their status must not have been canceled or discontinued.

This new standard is perceived by some lecturers as more challenging than previous rules, which required publications in Scopus-indexed journals with SJR > 0.10 or WoS IF > 0.05. The emergence of a large number of "Profesor Eligible" at state universities, in some cases double the number of definitive professors, has caused surprise.

Currently, only about 3% of Indonesia's approximately 330,000 lecturers hold the title of professor. This figure is notably low compared to developed countries. In the United States, for instance, 10-15% of lecturers are professors, supported by a structured tenure-track system. Similarly, the UK has around 12% of its lecturers in professorial roles. The article suggests that Indonesia's academic system may need to adapt to provide more structured career progression to foster a higher proportion of professors.