The State University of Malang (UM) team once again made achievements in the international arena. By carrying out the Villa-Chem product, the team, which mostly consists of students from the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (FMIPA), successfully brought home the Gold Medal for the Tertiary S&T (Science & Technology) category on Wednesday (5/2) in the Sabah International Virtual Innovation & Invention (SIVIIC). The competition, which has been open since November, is organized by Universiti Teknologi Mara, Sabah, Malaysia.

With the theme Bridging Research, Industry and Society for Sustainable Development, SIVIIC 2019-2020 aims to showcase the creativity of students, researchers, practitioners and professionals from all over the world through discoveries or innovations that can contribute to sustainable development. In this case, the UM team developed a product called Villa-Chem. This product is an android application in the form of a virtual laboratory used in the Chemical Separation course. "This product is useful for helping students to do pre-practicum. In this application there are also other menus aimed at supporting Chemistry Separation practicum lectures, "said Deni, a student of the Department of Chemistry, FMIPA, who is also a member of the Villa-Chem product development team. 

Deni also explained that Chemistry is a branch of science which is closely related to practicum activities. Practicum basically aims to provide a meaningful learning experience. In general, practicum requires prerequisites in the form of practical instructions to master higher knowledge. However, so far the practicum instructions have not been optimal in supporting the success of practicum goals. Based on the results of the team's observations, the tendency of students' low prerequisite knowledge has an impact on the low learning outcomes. Based on this, the UM team consisting of Ardian Arifka W (FMIPA), Annida Dhea HM (FMIPA), Deni Ainur R (FMIPA), M. Roy Ashrori (FMIPA), and Rahadian Dimas D. A (FS) then developed Virtual products. Laboratory on Analytical Chemistry integrated android (Villa-Chem).

"The initial process of the SIVIIC competition is abstract submission. Our team successfully passed the abstract selection, then packed the presentation in the form of a video to be uploaded to Youtube, "said Deni. Furthermore, he revealed that after sending the presentation video, his team managed to qualify for the best 20 teams which were then invited to Sabah to make a live presentation in front of the jury and several honored guests, such as the Malaysian Minister of Education and Innovation. Deni also confessed that he and his teammates went through a period of struggle that was fun and without pressure. They do everything casually, but still optimally, accompanied by prayer.

Closing the interview conducted by Communications, Deni also expressed his message for generation Z. He hopes that generation Z will not only take advantage of technological developments, but can also be involved in the process by taking part in research and development in accordance with their respective fields. Azril