14-6-2023 (JAKARTA) Putri Ariani, the 17-year-old blind singer who captured the hearts of many with her audition on America’s Got Talent, has been offered a full scholarship by the Indonesian government to attend her dream school if she gets accepted. Last week, Putri earned a Golden Buzzer from AGT judge Simon Cowell, which sends a contestant straight to the finals of the competition. On stage, Putri expressed her desire to attend New York’s Juilliard School, one of the most prestigious performing arts schools in the world.
Putri Ariani’s performance caught @simoncowell‘s attention and his #GoldenBuzzer! #AGT pic.twitter.com/xCCipcKmwT
— America’s Got Talent (@AGT) June 7, 2023
Education Minister Nadiem Makarim met with Putri last Friday and offered her a full scholarship through the Indonesia Forward Scholarship (BIM) program. Nadiem praised Putri’s extraordinary inspiration to the country and expressed the government’s desire to help her realise her dream of studying at her dream college. The BIM scholarship is given out to high-achieving high school students as they enter tertiary studies and also assists students in their application processes.
Recognising the difficulty in gaining acceptance into Juilliard, Nadiem has offered to help Putri in the admission process by providing a letter of recommendation from his ministry. In addition to the full scholarship, the scholarship will also support Putri’s test preparation during her admission process.
Putri, who could not hold back her tears of joy, expressed her gratitude to the minister for the opportunity to study abroad. However, some people have expressed discontent online over the distribution of scholarships like BIM, stating that other high-achieving and talented students may slip under the government’s radar. Despite the criticism, many people are happy for Putri and are proud of her achievements. President Joko Widodo also expressed his pride in Putri and encouraged her to continue following her dreams in the name of the nation.
