Once Viral on Social Media, Here's the Update on Indonesia's Youngest Rector, Risa Santoso

Kapanlagi.com - Risa Santoso once went viral as Indonesia's youngest rector. Born in Surabaya on October 27, 1992, she became the rector of the Asia Institute of Technology and Business (ITB) in Malang at the age of 27.

Until now, Risa still holds the position of rector and is busy with educational activities on campus. Her activities are filled with academic events, including speaking at many seminars.

Meanwhile, her personal life has also changed since almost two years ago. Her status has improved, from being engaged to now officially being the wife of Michael Sugijanto.

"If it's personal, I'm already married. At that time (when it went viral), I wasn't married yet, but I was already in a relationship with my future husband," Risa Santoso said after becoming a speaker at Adapting to Change at Hotel Tugu Malang.

"He's the same person. Back then, I wasn't married yet, but now I'm married," Risa said firmly.

1. Do Not Hide Personal Life

Risa Santoso, the youngest rector in Indonesia / Credit Photo: KapanLagi - Darmadi Sasongko

Risa's husband, Michael Sugijanto, earned a Bachelor of Administration & Business Management from the Albers School of Business & Economics at Seattle University, Washington. He also graduated from Pelita Harapan University (UPH) in Jakarta with a cum laude predicate.

Michael is involved in the legal world and notes in his biography as a Corporate Lawyer. He serves as a Senior Partner at Ansugi Law, a legal service to assist business owners.

Not much is known about Risa Santoso's personal life, including her marriage. Risa herself admits that she never hides it, but it is not something that should be talked about like a celebrity.

"It's okay to write about it. I imagine the headlines, 'This is the husband of Risa Santoso who went viral before', I'm not embarrassed," said Risa laughing.

2. Profile of Risa Santoso

Risa Santoso, the youngest rector in Indonesia / Credit Photo: KapanLagi - Darmadi Sasongko

Risa was appointed as Rector in early November 2019 and became a widely discussed topic in the online world. Her appointment as Rector at a young age at that time sparked curiosity.

Risa herself is a graduate of Bachelor's degree in Economics from the University of California, Berkeley. Meanwhile, she pursued her Master's degree through a scholarship from LPDP (Education Fund Management Agency) at Harvard University.

These two prestigious universities became her places to gain knowledge, where she focused on education in her Master's degree, which gave her the skills to manage higher education institutions. Until now, Risa has served as Rector for about 2.5 years.

Before becoming Rector, Risa Santoso had previously worked as one of the staff members in the Presidential Staff Office (KSP). For 1.5 years, she worked under the Deputy of Strategic Economic Issues in an institution that was led by Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan at that time.

(kpl/dar/gtr)