SEF at NUDC & KDMI 2025: UNSOED Becomes the National Center for Debate

The National University Debating Championship (NUDC) and the Kompetisi Debat Mahasiswa Indonesia (KDMI) 2025 are the most prestigious debating events in Indonesia, bringing together the best debaters from various public and private universities. The competition consists of two categories: NUDC, which uses the British Parliamentary (BP) format in English, and KDMI, which focuses on argumentation skills in Indonesian. Both competitions serve as strategic platforms for measuring critical thinking skills, argumentation, and persuasive presentation of ideas.

In 2025, Universitas Jenderal Soedirman (UNSOED) had the great honor of hosting the national-level competition. The event ran from 20–25th October 2025 and featured an opening ceremony, novice and equity briefings, preliminary rounds, break announcements, elimination rounds, a grand final, and an awarding night. Participants, adjudicators, and officials from all over Indonesia were present in Purwokerto, making the UNSOED campus a center for intellectual gatherings on a national scale. Organizing this event required intensive coordination, including arranging debate venues, participant accommodation, and other logistics.

As part of their professionalism and readiness, the Talent and Debate Department (TDD) under the Unsoed Student English Forum (SEF) took the lead in ensuring that every aspect of the competition met national standards. Through the Competition Division, coordinated by SEF President Dinar Danahari Amalia and co-coordinator from TDD Deputy Coordinator Putu Puspa Widyanti, the team worked to optimize debate mechanisms, adjudicator coordination, committee training, and venue preparation. With careful planning, SEF showcased its capacity as a leading English-based organization at UNSOED.

Following a series of events, UNSOED’s reputation in debate was highlighted by a proud achievement from one of its top adjudicators. David Aryodhi earned the Co-7th Best N1 Adjudicator NUDC, a prestigious recognition that reinforced UNSOED’s credibility in the national debate scene. This accomplishment stood as both a milestone and proof that UNSOED was not only prepared to host events but also had human resources recognized at the national level. In the end, UNSOED, working alongside SEF and its Talent and Debate Department as partners, as well as other supporting committees and organizers, successfully hosted NUDC and KDMI 2025. The event brought together top debaters from across Indonesia and ran smoothly thanks to the collaborative effort of all parties involved.

By Ejelin Putri Perdani, SEF Universitas Jenderal Soedirman