A Timorese Gem Who Wants to Educate His Community


A Story of Adrianus Ragil Indrajaya Korbafo, Bangkit 2022 Student from Universitas Timor
“One of the marvelous things about community is that it enables us to welcome and help people in a way we couldn't as individuals.”
(Jean Vanier, Canadian Philosopher)
When most people study hard for their bright future, Adrianus Ragil Indrajaya Korbafo (23) decided to broaden his knowledge to educate the youths in his hometown in North Central Timor, East Nusa Tenggara. His passion for learning was cultivated solely to build a tech community there so that his fellow Timorese youths could be as excellent as those who study in big cities.

Having limited sources of tech learning materials motivated Ragil―that’s what he called―to put more effort into studying IT. He didn’t only ingest insights he gained from campus but also absorbed any IT information milled about on the internet. He became one of the +600k subscribers of Sandhika Galih, a YouTuber who lectures about information and technology. Who would have thought that Ragil’s favorite YouTuber turned out to be his bridge to get to know Bangkit?

Led to Bangkit by His Favorite YouTuber


Ragil is the youngest son of a Timorese farmer and a housewife who have 7 (seven) children. He lives with his parents and several older siblings in Kefamenanu, North Central Timor, East Nusa Tenggara. Ragil’s elderly parents are no longer working. Therefore, Ragil is studying at the IT department of Universitas Timor with the help of a governmental scholarship. As the last hope of his parents, Ragil is expected to graduate, launch a career, and help his family soon.

Not living in a big city made Ragil admit that he couldn’t get sufficient information about tech learning materials.
“I am studying in a relatively new department on campus, and I have become the second batch of students. This made me acquire inadequate skills to compete with the graduates from big cities in the IT realm. Therefore, I surf the internet often to absorb more updated learning material.”
One of Ragil’s favorite learning sources is a YouTube channel belonging to Sandhika Galih. He even turned on the channel's notifications to always get the latest educational video. One day, Sandhika Galih promoted a scholarship program for 3,000 students in Indonesia that captured Ragil’s attention. That was how Ragil met Bangkit and decided to not waste this opportunity.

Supported 100% by the Lecturers


Currently, Ragil is in the 8th semester. He deliberately delayed his graduation to join the Cloud Computing path in Bangkit first. He felt unprepared to launch his tech career if he didn’t obtain weighty knowledge from Bangkit's well-structured curriculum. Seeing Ragil’s passion for learning burning up, all of his lecturers gave him 100% support.
“My lecturer provided support by converting my opt-in in Bangkit into a thesis. So I don't have to write any scientific papers and just have to make good progress in this educational program.”
Ragil saw Bangkit as the only bridge that could connect him with promising tech career opportunities. He felt immensely helped by this Kampus Merdeka program because this training ground can compensate for his deficiency in learning.


Poor English skills encouraged Ragil to leave his comfort zone while studying in Bangkit. Bangkit is an English-speaking educational program aiming to hone cohorts’ skills in utilizing foreign languages and soft skills.


However, as one of Bangkit's cohorts, Ragil also received a lot of positive impact from Bangkit's supportive learning environment. He didn’t want to get this opportunity away because, as far as he knew, a comprehensive program like Bangkit is usually paid and quite expensive on other platforms. Therefore, Ragil was grateful to take part in this program for free.

Now Teaching on Campus, Later Educating Larger Youth Timorese Community


It is undeniable that Ragil aspires to launch a tech career in a leading industry after graduating from Bangkit. However, this dream was made because Ragil has a big goal to dedicate himself to teaching the youth community in North Central Timor one day. Even currently, Ragil is serving as a lecturer assistant at his campus.
“I love teaching because one of my lecturers said that teaching increases our knowledge. In addition, I want to build a tech community for youths in North Central Timor one day. This is because I realize that limited resources in my hometown make it difficult for them to access knowledge about technology.”
Through the learning journey he experienced in Bangkit, Ragil wants to lead the Timorese youths to the advancement of technology. He said that many of his friends have a high passion for learning, but unfortunately, they lack resources and don’t have an instructor to teach them. Therefore, one day, when Ragil feels enough about his career as a developer, he wants to give back to the community by being a lecturer.


To his friends in Bangkit and North Central Timor, Ragil gave a message.
“If you have limited resources for learning, don’t be discouraged. You can get knowledge from various sources for free. Also, never be afraid to learn and try new things. It’s better to try and take wisdom from failure than not to try at all and have no progress in life.”
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