SEMARANG — Students from the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (FISIP), Universitas Negeri Semarang (UNNES), once again achieved an accomplishment in an interuniversity competition. Rohmatul Hidayah (Student ID 2503130067) and Miftahul Rohmah (Student ID 2503130066), students of the Communication Studies Study Program, won third place in the LENS (Look and Explore the News of Society) competition organized by the Faculty of Social Sciences and Communication (FISKOM), Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana (UKSW), Salatiga.
LENS is a competition and educational program designed to encourage young people to voice various social issues through visual media and digital literacy. In the competition, participants were challenged to produce visual journalistic works combining articles and photography and present them creatively in the form of written posters.
The competition was designed to strengthen the visual journalism skills of university and school students, expand professional and academic networks, and provide a platform through which participants’ works could reach and influence a wider public. In addition to the competition itself, participants gained insights through a workshop featuring expert speakers.
The 2026 LENS program was conducted through several stages. Participant registration took place from August 18 to 31, 2026, followed by a workshop on September 4, 2026, conducted in a hybrid format at Room GX304A on the UKSW campus and via Zoom. The competition period ran from September 4 to 8, 2026, while the awarding ceremony was held on September 10, 2026.
The achievement of Rohmatul Hidayah and Miftahul Rohmah demonstrates the ability of Communication Studies students at FISIP UNNES to transform information and social issues into communicative visual journalistic works. Through the combination of text and photography, participants were required not only to convey information but also to present messages in an engaging and accessible manner for the public.
During their participation in the competition, the two students received guidance from Himmatul Ulya, S.IP., M.I.Kom., who served as their academic supervisor. The academic mentoring played an important role in helping the students develop their ideas, produce their work, and prepare for a competition that emphasized creativity and visual communication skills.
The LENS competition also provided valuable learning experiences beyond the classroom. Students had the opportunity to develop their journalism skills, digital literacy, visual creativity, and professional networks while interacting with participants from diverse educational backgrounds. Such experiences also strengthen students’ readiness to navigate the rapidly evolving communication industry, which increasingly requires the ability to integrate and utilize various forms of media.
In addition to winning third place, Rohmatul Hidayah and Miftahul Rohmah’s achievement contributes to the efforts of FISIP UNNES students to communicate social issues through creative and educational media. Participation in competitions such as LENS demonstrates that students are not merely consumers of information, but can also become producers of meaningful messages capable of offering valuable perspectives to society.
The activity is aligned with the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4: Quality Education, through the development of students’ competencies, creativity, and digital literacy. The development of communication skills and the use of media to communicate social issues also contribute to cultivating a younger generation that is more critical, adaptive, and capable of making meaningful contributions to society.
The achievement of Rohmatul Hidayah and Miftahul Rohmah at LENS 2026 demonstrates that higher education can be strengthened through competitive experiences that combine academic knowledge, creativity, and practical skills. Their accomplishment further highlights the role of FISIP UNNES Communication Studies students in producing visual journalistic works that are relevant to social dynamics and the development of the digital media ecosystem.
