Universitas Syiah Kuala (USK)

Universitas Syiah Kuala (USK) is a public university located in Banda Aceh, in Aceh Province at the northern tip of Sumatra. Founded in 1961 at the initiative of Governor Ali Hasjmy and Dr Syamaun Abubakar, it is named after the Acehnese sultan and scholar Syiah Kuala and is the largest and oldest university in the province. USK has around ten faculties covering economics and business, veterinary medicine and animal husbandry, medicine, dentistry, engineering, agriculture, law, mathematics and natural sciences, social and political sciences, teacher training and health sciences. Its graduate school administers dozens of master's and doctoral programmes. Tuition follows the national UKT system in five groups, starting at around IDR 500,000 per semester for the least expensive programmes and rising above IDR 26,000,000 for veterinary medicine, with SPI contributions for independently admitted students. The university has played a central role in Aceh's academic recovery since the 2004 tsunami and maintains extensive international partnerships.