Administrative Justice in Student Admission in Disadvantaged Regions: A Case Study of SPMB Implementation in West Nusa Tenggara

Abstract

Digitalized student admission systems are increasingly promoted as instruments for transparency, efficiency, and accountability. However, their implementation in geographically disadvantaged regions may generate new forms of exclusion when families have unequal access to digital infrastructure, information, administrative assistance, and institutional support. This study investigates administrative justice in the implementation of Indonesia’s New Student Admission System (SPMB) in disadvantaged, frontier, and outermost areas of West Nusa Tenggara. The study focuses on the experiences of students and parents who encounter geographical, technological, and administrative barriers during the admission process. Using a qualitative case study design, data are examined through the concepts of procedural justice, accessibility, and institutional responsiveness. Particular attention is given to the role of teachers, schools, and local governments in assisting families with registration and documentation. The study argues that formal digital equality does not necessarily create substantive administrative equality. In remote communities, equitable admission requires differentiated institutional support rather than uniform procedures. The case demonstrates that teachers may function as intermediaries between centralized digital policy and communities with limited administrative capacity. The findings contribute to debates on digital governance and education justice by highlighting the need to incorporate territorial inequality into the design of supposedly universal education policies.