There are approximately 150,000 primary schools across the archipelago, and nearly every one of them could use more money and resources to properly provide for their students. Coincidentally, while 3.6 million students graduate from these primary schools each year, less than a million graduate from senior high school, which seems to imply a national dropout rate of nearly 75 per cent.

In 2004, Indonesia's education system was ranked 111th in the world by the UN Human Development Index, which is far behind regional neighbors such as Malaysia, Singapore and even the Philippines. The improvement of education throughout the country seems like a hopeless mission. That is, until you meet people like Mythia and Derianto.

Themselves products of the Indonesian education system, the two are also symbols of its potential. They are just two examples of more than 18,300 Indonesian students who have been awarded scholarships over the past five years by the Sampoerna Foundation. An independent, not-for-profit organization, the foundation launched in 2001 an ambitious campaign to improve both the standard of teachers in Indonesia and the access that poorer sections of the community have to them.

The annual scholarships themselves range from primary school to university, although the hallmark of the Sampoerna Foundation is the 18 international scholarships that are awarded to the best and brightest students nationwide each year. They are given to gifted learners who have worked incredibly hard, and have shown strong leadership skills throughout their careers.

Most importantly, as is evident in Mythia and Derianto, the scholarships are awarded to people committed to strengthening Indonesia's economic and social fabric.
For Mythia, 27, this is a day-to-day task in her job as a financial advisor, in which, she said, she helps "Indonesian companies to be more competitive when they participate in the global community." It's an unusual outcome for someone who started her student life studying information science, at the Institute of Technology in Bandung, where she achieved a Grade Point Average of 3.24.

Having gained a degree, and later a job as a wide-area network (WAN) engineer, Mythia decided in 2001 that her real passion was the business world. In a risky, yet brilliant, move, Mythia decided on a change in career direction, despite her lack of experience in the field.

After starting work at Citibank in Surabaya, she quickly increased productivity and impressed her bosses, but was aware that to fully realize her ambitious, more work and study needed to be done. It must have been a tough thing to admit to, but Mythia clearly relished the experience. Within a year, she had been accepted into the University of Michigan, and had won a scholarship to cover her tuition fees. From working in a small bank branch in Surabaya, Mythia soon found herself providing information to international companies in New York, as part of her work experience at the university.

No stranger to a challenge, Mythia's experiences in the U.S. -- where she had to adjust to a different culture, and experienced things such as a snowstorm for the first time -- provides an important example for young students. "There was a strong focus (at the University of Michigan) on gaining hands-on experience," she said. I think the work I was doing was more advanced than what you would normally do in a bachelor's degree, but I think too many Indonesians just learn the theory."

"Of course, it's hard work, but you learn much more that way. Working as a team, there is more competition, but that's a positive thing because you are more productive and have more pressure put on you."

This message is reflected in Mythia's fellow scholar, Derianto, though he has not progressed quite as far in his career. There is a reason for this, however. Derianto is a mere 18 years old, although he has already been accepted to Stanford University, one of the world's most prestigious.

At the age of 16, Derianto represented Indonesia at the 2004 International Science Olympiad, where he competed in information science. Despite being two years younger than many of his competitors, he secured a silver medal, and hopes to improve that feat when he competes in this year's Olympiad. But success has not come easily for Derianto. He first began reading the codes of his favorite computer games at the age of 11, and was soon spending his spare time writing his own codes. Asked if he had any advice for those yet to graduate from senior high school, he mirrored the sentiments of Mythia.

"It's important to study something that you enjoy," he said. "A lot of my friends chose to do things because their parents wanted them to, or because they just wanted to go to a particular university." It's a point highlighted in the mission statement of the Sampoerna Foundation, in giving students the resources they need to achieve their ambitions.
Too often, said Hendri Satrio of the foundation, students are discouraged from learning, because of their own poverty. "We believe that education is the root cause of the social problems in Indonesia," he said. "We believe there is much potential in the country and aim to unlock that potential."