Faculty of Dawah and Communication

The Faculty of Da’wah and Communication at the State Islamic University (UIN) Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta has a long history in the development of da’wah and communication studies in Indonesia. The faculty was established on September 30, 1970, pursuant to Decree of the Minister of Religious Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia No. 254 of 1970, under the name Faculty of Da’wah. The establishment of this faculty resulted from the expansion of the Faculty of Ushuluddin, which at that time housed the Department of Da’wah, along with the Departments of Philosophy and Sufism.

The transformation of the Da’wah program into an independent faculty was closely tied to the socio-political dynamics of Indonesia at that time. On September 11, 1971, A. Mukti Ali, an academic from IAIN Sunan Kalijaga, was appointed Minister of Religion. Under his leadership, the Ministry of Religion formulated the program “The holistic development of the Indonesian people and the entire Indonesian society,” and introduced the concept of “religious harmony” to solidify Indonesia as a Pancasila-based state.

Since its inception, the faculty has continued to grow by opening various departments tailored to the needs of society. In the 1976/1977 academic year, the first two departments were established: the Department of al-Milal wa al-Nihal and the Department of al-Tabligh wa al-Nasyr. These two departments were later expanded into the Department of Religious Information and Broadcasting (PPA) and the Department of Community Guidance and Counseling (BPM). 

In 1988, the program names were changed to Islamic Information and Broadcasting (PPAI) and Islamic Guidance and Counseling (BPAI), which later evolved into:

• 1997: Islamic Communication and Broadcasting (KPI) and Islamic Guidance and Counseling (BKI) programs
• 1997: Launch of the Islamic Community Development (PMI) Program
• 1999: Launch of the Da’wah Management (MD) Program
• 2009: Launch of the Social Welfare Studies (IKS) Program, coinciding with the transformation of IAIN into UIN Sunan Kalijaga

On March 28, 2013, through Minister of Religious Affairs Regulation No. 26 of 2013, the Faculty of Da’wah was officially renamed the Faculty of Da’wah and Communication, following changes to the organizational structure of UIN Sunan Kalijaga. At that time, the faculty administered five undergraduate programs:

• Islamic Communication and Broadcasting (B.A.)
• Islamic Counseling and Guidance (B.A.)
• Islamic Community Development (B.A.)
• Da’wah Management (B.A.)
• Social Welfare (B.A.)

Academic development accelerated with the launch of a master’s program to support research and professionalization in the fields of da’wah and communication:

• 2016: The Master’s Program in Islamic Communication and Broadcasting (S2) was launched pursuant to Decree No. 363 of 2016
• 2023: The Master’s Program in Islamic Community Development (M.A.) and the Master’s Program in Islamic Guidance and Counseling (M.A.) were launched pursuant to Decree No. 1128 of 2022 and Decree No. 1230 of 2022
• 2024: The Master of Social Welfare (S2) program was launched based on Decree No. 639/E/0/2024