The purpose of the Indonesian Studies Program is to promote the study of Indonesia by UCLA graduate students and faculty through conferences, lectures, and fellowships. The program will promote deeper understanding of Indonesia and its global significance.

The Indonesian Studies Program currently has three components:
It provides grants to UCLA graduate students to travel to Indonesia to conduct field work and archival research. The recipients are known as Lemelson Fellows; it sponsors conferences and workshops on Indonesian Studies at UCLA; and it brings to the UCLA campus Indonesia experts (both Indonesian and non-Indonesian) both to conduct research and to enhance the regular curriculum by giving lectures, and by meeting with students and faculty. In addition, UCLA is currently the only university in Southern California to offer Indonesian language instruction at the beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels.