Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Minggu depan, saya bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus. - Next week, I will join the programming club on campus.

Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense. The verb bergabung itself is timeless; it can mean join / is joining / joined / will join, depending on context.

The time information comes from the time expression Minggu depan (next week). Because Minggu depan clearly refers to the future, the sentence as a whole is understood as I will join, not I join or I am joining.

You can add a future marker:

Minggu depan, saya akan bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus.
→ Next week, I will join the programming club on campus.

But akan is optional; the original sentence is already naturally understood as future because of Minggu depan.

Can I move Minggu depan to another position in the sentence?

Yes. Common options are:

Minggu depan, saya bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus.
Saya bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus minggu depan.
Saya akan bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus minggu depan.

All are grammatical and mean the same thing. Typical patterns:

Time at the front (Minggu depan, ...) sounds slightly more formal or narrative, and emphasizes the time.
Time at the end (... minggu depan) is very common in everyday speech.

So you can place Minggu depan at the beginning or end with no change in basic meaning.

Is Minggu here week or Sunday? How can I tell?

Minggu can mean:

week (usually written minggu with a lowercase m), or
Sunday (usually Minggu with a capital M).

At the start of a sentence, the first letter is capitalized anyway, so you have to use context. The phrase Minggu depan is a fixed expression that almost always means next week, not next Sunday.

If you want to say next Sunday, more natural choices are:

Hari Minggu depan
Minggu depan hari Minggu (less common, and can sound repetitive)

Here, with bergabung dengan klub (a one‑time action that could happen any day) and no mention of hari, Minggu depan is understood as next week.

Is the comma after Minggu depan required?

In Indonesian, it is common (and recommended in formal writing) to put a comma after a fronted time or place expression:

Minggu depan, saya bergabung ...
Di kampus, saya ikut ...

In everyday writing or texting, many people omit it:

Minggu depan saya bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus.

Both are acceptable. The comma simply separates the initial time phrase from the main clause.

What exactly does bergabung mean, and how is it formed?

The base word is gabung, which has the sense to combine / to join / to be mixed together.

The prefix ber- often forms intransitive verbs meaning to have / to be in the state of / to do something involving X.

So:

gabung → bergabung = to join (a group), to become part of.

In this sentence, saya bergabung dengan klub pemrograman means I join / will join the programming club, with the idea of becoming a member or part of that group.

Why is it bergabung dengan and not bergabung ke or just bergabung klub?

Common patterns:

bergabung dengan [group/person] = to join (and become part of) [group/person]
- Saya bergabung dengan klub itu. → I join that club.

Using dengan highlights joining together with someone/something.

bergabung ke is much less common and sounds off in many contexts. Native speakers strongly prefer bergabung dengan or other verbs (like masuk ke, ikut, mendaftar ke).

You also cannot normally drop the preposition:

✗ saya bergabung klub pemrograman (unnatural)
✓ saya bergabung dengan klub pemrograman (natural)

So the natural collocation for join a club/organization is bergabung dengan [klub/organisasi].

Could I say ikut klub pemrograman instead of bergabung dengan klub pemrograman? What is the difference?

Yes, you can use ikut, and it is very common in speech:

Minggu depan, saya ikut klub pemrograman di kampus.

Rough nuance:

bergabung (dengan) = more like to join as a member, a bit more formal or neutral.
ikut = literally to follow / to take part / to go along with; often feels more casual, can mean participate in, be part of, or join.

In many real-life contexts they overlap a lot. To highlight that you are officially becoming a member, bergabung dengan or masuk ke sounds slightly clearer.

Is klub pemrograman word order the same as in English programming club?

Yes, in this case the order matches English:

klub = club (head noun)
pemrograman = programming (modifier noun)

In Indonesian, the main noun usually comes first, and the word after it narrows down or describes the type:

klub musik = music club
klub bahasa = language club
klub pemrograman = programming club

So klub pemrograman literally means club (of) programming → programming club.

What does pemrograman mean exactly?

pemrograman comes from:

program (from English)
Prefix pe- and suffix -an form a noun related to the base verb or process.

So pemrograman = programming (as an activity/field), i.e.:

klub pemrograman = programming club
saya belajar pemrograman = I study programming

It refers to the activity or discipline of writing computer programs.

What does di kampus add? Could I just say di kampus = at campus?

di is the basic preposition for location: in / at / on (depending on context).

kampus = campus
di kampus = on campus / at the campus

You need the preposition di. Just saying kampus alone would normally be interpreted as a noun (subject/object), not a location:

Saya suka kampus ini. = I like this campus.
Saya belajar di kampus. = I study on campus.

In your sentence, di kampus tells you where the club is (and where you are joining it). Without it:

Minggu depan, saya bergabung dengan klub pemrograman.

is still correct; it just no longer specifies that the club is on campus.

Can I omit saya? Is the subject pronoun required?

In Indonesian, subject pronouns can be omitted if the context makes the subject clear. So this is possible:

Minggu depan, bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus.

However, this version can feel incomplete or slightly unnatural in isolation, because it looks like an instruction: Next week, (you) join the programming club on campus.

If you are clearly talking about yourself (e.g., in a longer paragraph about your plans), omitting saya can be fine, but the most natural, neutral form when the sentence stands alone is to keep saya:

Minggu depan, saya bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus.

What is the difference between saya and aku here?

Both mean I / me, but they differ in formality and register:

saya: neutral–polite, standard Indonesian. Suitable in almost all situations: talking to strangers, teachers, in writing, etc.
aku: more informal/intimate; used with friends, family, or in casual speech.

So:

Minggu depan, saya bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus.
→ Polite/neutral, standard.
Minggu depan, aku bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus.
→ More casual, as you might say to a close friend.

The rest of the sentence stays the same.

Could I say pada minggu depan instead of Minggu depan?

You can say:

Pada minggu depan, saya bergabung dengan klub pemrograman di kampus.

but in everyday modern Indonesian, pada is usually omitted with minggu depan, tahun depan, besok, etc.

Minggu depan, saya bergabung ... (most natural)
Pada minggu depan, saya bergabung ... (more formal or slightly stiff in casual speech)

So the version without pada is preferred in normal spoken and written Indonesian.

Are there other ways to say next week besides Minggu depan?

Yes, but Minggu depan is the most common. Alternatives include:

pekan depan – next week (more formal or regional; used in some news/media)
minggu yang akan datang – the week that is coming (more formal/literary)

In everyday conversation, Minggu depan is the default, especially among students.