Tere Liye Novel Enthusiast, UNU Jogja Informatics Student Becomes Runner-Up in “Hardiknas Olympiad” for Indonesian Language Category

Ahmad ‘Abdul Latif, a student of the Informatics Study Program at Nahdlatul Ulama University Yogyakarta (UNU Jogja), secured the runner-up position in the national “Hardiknas Olympiad” Batch 4 competition. Interestingly, Latif achieved this accomplishment in a field outside his major, winning in the Indonesian Language category.

The competition was organized by the Global Youth and Peace Education Movement (GYPEM) in collaboration with the National Institute of Technology (ITN) Malang from 9–24 May 2026.

Latif shared that participating in the “Hardiknas Olympiad” was an exciting experience for him. After seeing the competition announcement on social media, he immediately registered for four categories: Mathematics, Economics, English, and Indonesian Language.

The competition attracted hundreds of university students from across Indonesia. In each category, participants had to answer dozens of questions within a limited time. The preliminary and semifinal rounds were conducted online.

“From the beginning, I was nervous because many participants came from leading public universities,” said the 2024 UNU Jogja student.

When the preliminary results were announced, Latif briefly lost hope. His name did not appear in the Mathematics, Economics, and English categories. However, when the Indonesian Language category results were released, the student from Purworejo, Central Java, regained his confidence.

Out of hundreds of contestants, he advanced to the semifinal stage and later became one of the 11 participants who qualified for the final round.

The final round was held offline at the ITN Malang campus on Saturday (23/5/2026). According to Latif, the questions were far more difficult and complex. The Indonesian Language section included long reading passages with questions about themes, main messages, appropriate word choices, and sentence conjunctions.

Participants had to complete 30 questions within 30 minutes. “I prepared myself by studying Indonesian language materials,” said the fan of Tere Liye’s novels.

Latif admitted he was not fully confident about his answers in the final round. Therefore, when the winners were announced, he was surprised to find his name in second place, losing only to a participant from a well-known university in East Java.

“I was shocked because I wasn’t sure about all of my answers,” he said with a laugh.

With this achievement, Latif became the national second-place winner of the “Hardiknas Olympiad” Batch 4. The three highest-scoring participants, including Latif, each received a gold medal.

Latif’s accomplishment reflects UNU Jogja’s support for students with diverse talents, including achievements beyond their primary academic field, enabling them to reach their fullest potential.

Head of the Informatics Study Program, Yana Hendriana, expressed appreciation for Latif’s achievement at the Hardiknas Olympiad held at ITN Malang. According to him, Latif’s runner-up finish was particularly noteworthy, considering that a student who usually focuses on informatics was able to excel in a different field.

“This is a unique achievement and also shows that UNU Jogja, especially the Informatics Study Program of the Faculty of Information Technology, provides broad opportunities for students to excel in various fields aligned with their interests and is ready to support every student’s talent,” he said. [Arif]