The COVID-19 pandemic that has been ongoing in Indonesia since early 2020 has not deterred Politeknik Statistika STIS from holding a series of New Student Admissions (SPMB) exams for the 2020/2021 Academic Year. Various adjustments were made to ensure that the SPMB implementation adhered to health protocols established by the Ministry of Health.

Given the high interest of high school (SMA/MA) graduates in entering civil service universities, especially Politeknik Statistika STIS , and to improve the quality of prospective new students, this year new policies were implemented, including opening opportunities for graduates of vocational high schools (SMK/MAK) majoring in Computer Engineering and Informatics, specifically for the Statistical Computing Diploma IV Program. Furthermore, Politeknik Statistika STIS also raised the minimum Mathematics and English scores listed on SMA/MA/SMK/MAK diplomas to 80 (scale 1-100) or 3.2 (scale 1.00-4.00). Despite this, the number of applicants remained high, reaching 26,822.

This year's SPMB began with the Basic Competency Selection (SKD) exam organized by the State Civil Service Agency (BKN). Politeknik Statistika STIS SKD pass rate reached 81.88 percent (the highest compared to other civil service colleges). However, the Regulation of the Minister of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform (PERMENPAN-RB) No. 48 of 2020 Article 9 Paragraph (1) point (a) which states that participants who can pass the further selection are those whose SKD scores meet the threshold and are ranked the best at most 3 (three) times the number of formations approved by the Minister of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform, so the number of participants who are entitled to continue to the next stage is only 1,615 people. The details are 900 people for the Statistics D-IV Program, 450 people for the Statistical Computing D-IV Program, and 265 people for the Statistics D-III Program. Specifically for the Statistics D-III Program, the number of participants who can meet the SKD score threshold is less than the required formation, which is 450 people.

Passing participants then took the Phase II (Mathematics) exam, held from August 22-24, 2020 (for Central Kalimantan, the selection process was postponed to August 29-31, 2020, due to COVID-19). Several adjustments made due to the implementation of COVID-19 health protocols during this phase included only two exam sessions per day (four sessions in previous years) and limiting the number of participants to a maximum of 50 per session at each exam center.

While in previous years, supervisors and technical staff were assigned from the central office (Politeknik Statistika STIS) to oversee and assist with the exam administration in 33 provinces, this year's implementation was different. "Despite limitations due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the implementation of the Phase II Exam in the regions is still being monitored by the central government, albeit virtually through the Zoom application. Central officials, who are lecturers at Politeknik Statistika STIS , will monitor the exam and coordinate with committees at each exam location in the 33 provinces. However, for DKI Jakarta Province, where the exam is held on Politeknik Statistika STIS campus, officials will directly supervise the exam on-site," explained Yunarso Anang, Ph.D. (SPMB Phase II Exam Coordinator for Politeknik Statistika STIS ).

The absence of proctors and technical staff assigned to the regions also necessitated adjustments to the computer-based Phase II Exam. While previously, test computers were connected to a local server, this year they connect directly to the main (centralized) server online via the internet. This change is not without several challenges, one of which is internet connection issues in the regions. Sri Herwanto Dwi Hatmo, S.Si, M.A., the Regional Technical Officer Coordinator, explained that the central technical team has prepared a number of mitigation measures, which have been coordinated with all regional technical officers, particularly for unstable internet and network connections. These connection disruptions are then analyzed, and server connection paths are rerouted if necessary.

Dr. Adi Lumaksono, M.A. (Principal Secretary of the Central Statistics Agency), accompanied by Dr. Erni Tri Astuti, M.Math (Director of Politeknik Statistika STIS ) and Dr. Hardius Usman, S.Si, M.Si (Deputy Director I of Statistics Polytechnic STIS ), inspected the implementation of Phase II of the DKI Jakarta Provincial Examination at the STIS Statistics Polytechnic Campus. He expressed his appreciation to all staff at Politeknik Statistika STIS for their continued ability to organize the SPMB despite these difficult circumstances. This success is due to the strong coordination between the central committee, the regional committee (BPS Province), and the COVID-19 Task Force at both the central and regional levels.

Various adjustments made this year still prioritize the SPMB principle as A platform to identify the nation's best sons and daughters to become civil servants in the field of statistics without interference from any party. "I am confident that the accountability of Politeknik Statistika STIS is very high in every selection process, and it is firmly maintained throughout. That is what makes our students so high-quality," explained Dr. Adi Lumaksono, M.A. He also added that the quality students desired by Politeknik Statistika STIS have several dimensions and are reflected in each stage of the selection process. This Phase II exam will screen prospective students with truly high academic quality. The initial selection results, with a minimum score of 80 on the diploma, are a good starting point, coupled with those (participants) who successfully pass Phase II, which uses a ranking system. "After selecting participants with good academic quality, in Phase III, we will also select participants with prime physical condition. This is because after graduation, participants will be required to adapt to the rapidly changing dynamics both on campus and in the workplace," he added.

With the elimination of the Psychometric Test this year as part of pandemic adjustments, Politeknik Statistika STIS is relying on the results of the SKD (Student Selection Test), which also incorporates psychological elements. However, the BPS leadership also advised Politeknik Statistika STIS staff, acting as a learning platform, to guide students not only academically but also behaviorally.

Participants taking the second phase of the exam were quite diverse. Some were high school (SMA/MA/SMK/MAK) graduates this year who had been accepted into state universities. Several participants had also studied at other universities over the past year. Becoming a Civil Servant (PNS) and a love of mathematics were among the main motivations for these participants to persevere through each selection stage. "I should have been able to solve the problem, but I forgot the formula because I was so nervous," said one participant who had just completed the second phase of the Mathematics exam at Politeknik Statistika STIS campus.