Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Besok pagi saya punya wawancara kerja di kantor pusat. - Tomorrow morning I have a job interview at the head office.

besok pagi is more common and neutral.
pagi besok is also correct, but sounds a bit more formal or is used when the day is already clear from context (like “the morning of tomorrow” rather than just “tomorrow morning”).

In everyday speech and writing, besok pagi is the usual choice.

Can the time and place go in other positions? For example, can I say Saya punya wawancara kerja besok pagi di kantor pusat?

Yes. Indonesian word order is quite flexible with time and place phrases.

All of these are grammatical:

Besok pagi saya punya wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.
– Emphasizes when it happens (tomorrow morning).
Saya punya wawancara kerja besok pagi di kantor pusat.
– More neutral; many speakers would say it this way too.
Saya punya wawancara kerja di kantor pusat besok pagi.
– Slightly more focus on the place first, then time.

Time expressions often go at the beginning or right after the verb phrase, and place expressions usually follow the verb or object, but none of these word orders is “wrong” here.

Why is saya used here? Could I use aku, or drop the pronoun completely?

saya is the neutral–polite word for I / me, good in almost any situation (work, formal, or with people you don’t know well).
aku is more informal / intimate, used with friends, family, or people your own age in casual situations.

In this sentence:

Besok pagi saya punya wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.
→ Neutral and safe in most contexts.
Besok pagi aku punya wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.
→ Sounds more personal or casual.

You can sometimes drop the pronoun if it’s clear from context, especially in conversation:

Besok pagi punya wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.

This is understandable, but many speakers will still include saya/aku in a full-sentence context, especially in writing or more formal speech.

Why use punya here? Could I say saya ada wawancara kerja instead? Is there a difference?

Both are possible, but they differ slightly in feel and frequency:

punya literally means to own / to have (possession), and by extension can mean to have (an appointment/event).
ada means there is / there are, and in sentences like this it can function like “I have (something scheduled)”.

In practice:

Besok pagi saya ada wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.
→ Very natural and common in Indonesian for “I have a job interview tomorrow morning at the head office.”
Besok pagi saya punya wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.
→ Understandable and not wrong, but sounds a bit closer to English “I have a job interview”, and is less idiomatic than using ada for a scheduled event.

If you want to sound very natural, prefer:

Besok pagi saya ada wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.

Is wawancara kerja a fixed expression? Why is it not kerja wawancara?

Yes, wawancara kerja is a normal, fixed-sounding expression meaning job interview.

In Indonesian, the main noun usually comes first, and the word that specifies or describes it comes after it:

wawancara = interview
kerja = work / job

So wawancara kerja literally feels like interview (about) work, i.e. job interview.

Putting it the other way (kerja wawancara) would sound wrong, like saying “job of interview” instead of “interview for a job”.

How would I say “I have two job interviews tomorrow morning”? How do I make wawancara plural?

Nouns in Indonesian usually don’t change form for singular vs plural. Plurality is shown by context, numbers, or extra words.

To say two job interviews, you can say:

dua wawancara kerja – literally “two job interview(s)”
Whole sentence:
Besok pagi saya ada dua wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.

If you really want to emphasize plural without a number, you can use reduplication:

wawancara-wawancara kerja (job interviews – plural)

But in practice, numbers like dua, tiga, beberapa (two, three, several) are more common.

Why is it di kantor pusat and not ke kantor pusat?

di means at / in / on (location, where something is).
ke means to / towards (direction, movement).

In this sentence, the focus is on where the interview takes place, not on the movement:

di kantor pusat = at the head office → correct here.
ke kantor pusat = to the head office → would sound like you’re emphasizing the motion: “I’m going to the head office.”

If you wanted to focus on going there, you’d say something like:

Besok pagi saya pergi ke kantor pusat untuk wawancara kerja.
(Tomorrow morning I’m going to the head office for a job interview.)

What exactly does kantor pusat mean? Is it like “head office”, “HQ”, or something else?

kantor = office
pusat = center

Together, kantor pusat means head office / headquarters of a company or organization (usually the main central office, not a branch).

Some related terms:

kantor cabang = branch office
kantor pusat perusahaan = the company’s head office

So di kantor pusat here is best understood as at the head office or at the main office.

There’s no verb form showing the future like “will have”. How do we know it’s future, and how would I say it more explicitly?

Indonesian verbs don’t change form for tense. Time is usually shown by time words, such as:

besok (tomorrow)
kemarin (yesterday)
tadi (earlier today)
sudah (already), akan (will), etc.

In your sentence, besok pagi already makes it clear this is in the future, so:

Besok pagi saya punya/ada wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.
→ “I have a job interview tomorrow morning at the head office.”

If you want to be more explicit about the future, you can add akan:

Besok pagi saya akan ada wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.
More natural: Besok pagi saya akan wawancara kerja di kantor pusat.

But in most everyday speech, besok pagi alone is enough; akan is optional.

How would this sentence change in casual speech, for example when texting a friend?

In casual, colloquial Indonesian, people often:

Use aku or gue/gw instead of saya (depending on region).
Drop some words if the meaning is clear.
Sometimes borrow English interview.

Examples:

Besok pagi aku ada interview kerja di kantor pusat.
Besok pagi gue interview kerja di kantor pusat. (Jakarta-style casual)
Besok pagi aku ada wawancara kerja di kantor pusat. (still quite natural, just with aku)

Your original sentence with saya and wawancara kerja is good neutral Indonesian; switching to aku and maybe interview makes it feel more informal.