On January 25th 2024, the Social Welfare Department of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta held a thesis defense in English for the second time in 15 years. It was attended by: Ahmad Zaky as the chairman of the thesis defense and the head of the Social Welfare Department; Sonya Soraya Kusnadi as the secretary; Siti Napsiyah and Suhendra as the examiner; and Muhammad Kholis Hamdy as the supervisor. The thesis was written in English by the examinee, Amira Nadia Salsabila (NIM 11170541000051), as a completion of her bachelor's degree. Her supervisor, Muhammad Kholis Hamdy was the first Social Welfare student to have an English-spoken thesis defense in 2009.

The thesis is titled "Social Work Practice in the Process of Intercountry Adoption at Yayasan Sayap Ibu Jakarta" discussing the roles, skills, and values that Social Workers implement in their work. The research revealed that as the most important professional in the Intercountry adoption procedure, the social worker plays various roles throughout their engagement with the client, as well as applying the skills and values and combining those aspects to deliver the best service for prospective adoptive parents and prospective adoptive child. This thesis is hoped not just to be a reference for future research on the social work field, but also an input for the Ministry of Social Affairs as the highest authority in Intercountry adoption to maintain and improve their regulation for the protection of the service and advancement of the social work profession.

The thesis defense started at 8 AM, starting with an opening by Mr. Ahmad Zaky welcoming the attendees, and then a 10-minute presentation by the examinee, followed by questioning by the examiners, and ended with the thesis result statement. At the end of the thesis defense, the examiners appreciated Amira for her willingness to write an English-written thesis and gave feedback on how to improve her writing. As input, the examiners suggested continuing the writing and publishing it as a journal and hope that an English-written thesis would continue its legacy to the students of social welfare in the future.