From June 20 to 27, 2012, eleven students of Magister of Government Science (MIP) of  Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (UMY) batch 2011/2012 led by the secretary of the department,  Dr. Dyah Mutiarin, joined a Student Exchange Program in Master of Social Science in Gender Studies, KANITA, in Universiti Sains Malaysia ( USM ), Penang, Malaysia with the theme of public service for women. During the program, the students of MIP were really enthusiastic in attending the lectures, which combine various learning methods such as discussion, structured assignments, presentations, and site visit to several institutions of Penang, Malaysia, government. The ones giving lectures were not only lecturers from USM, but also bureaucrats, gender activists, public service activists.

The director of KANITA USM, Prof. Datin Rashidah Shuib, stated that KANITA USM welcomed this Student Exchange program as a real academic cooperation. KANITA USM, which concentrates on women empowerment and gender-based public service, is chosen to be the partnering university because it is considered capable of giving insights to the students of Magister of Government Science of UMY. This is important because the paradigm of public service applying gender mainstreaming is becoming a demand that Indonesian people should respond to.

Dr. Ulung Pribadi, the Head of MIP UMY, added that as a featured program, this student exchange can strengthen the international networking of the participating students, and can reinforce competitiveness of MIP UMY graduates, especially in planning gender-based public service.