My Experience in Agama Class as an International Student at Universitas Andalas.

Reactor building UNAND

When I first joined Universitas Andalas as an international student from Bangladesh, I knew there would be challenges adjusting to a new academic system. One of the biggest challenges this semester was my Agama class, where the whole course was taught in Bahasa Indonesia, which I don’t speak or understand.

This made things hard for me throughout the semester. My classmates could follow the lecturer easily, but I often couldn’t understand what was being taught in real time. It was a strange feeling, sitting in a class full of important discussion, knowing the topics mattered, but not being able to follow along because of the language.

What helped me get through this was my classmates. After class, some of them would explain the material to me in simple terms, mixing English and Indonesian so I could understand the main points. I really appreciated that they took the time to include me even though it wasn’t easy for them either. As for lecturer i got options of writing my ideas and assignments in English even the Bahasa Indonesia was the formality.

One thing that stood out to me this semester was the tutoring sessions with seniors. Outside class, a senior taught us basic Islamic rules, daily duas, and how to pray properly. He also checked on our prayers and good deeds during the weeks, which I didn’t expect from a university course. This felt more personal than a normal lecture, more like real guidance than just teaching. For me, still learning how to practice religion properly in a new country, this was one of the most useful parts of the whole semester.

Even with the language problem in lectures, I found the topics in this course genuinely interesting. Agama isn’t just about studying, it’s about values and character, things every student should think about. The tutoring sessions and the classroom lessons together gave me a better understanding of what this course was trying to teach, even when I couldn’t fully follow the lecture itself.

If I can give one honest feedback, it’s this: for international students like me who don’t speak Bahasa Indonesia, having some English material or support would help a lot. Religious education is too important to be limited just because of language. The tutoring sessions showed me that when something is explained in a simple and personal way, it works, no matter what language background someone has.

This semester taught me more than just the course content. It taught me patience and gratitude for the people who helped me understand things I couldn’t on my own, especially the senior who led our tutoring sessions. I hope in the future the university finds ways to make courses like Agama easier for international students to follow.

Looking back, I realized that this course gave me more than just religious knowledge, it gave me a chance to grow, to ask for help when I needed it, and to feel a little less like an outsider in a place that was completely new to me.

Thank you to my lecturer, my classmates, and the senior who guided us, for being patient with me this semester.