He decided to pursue further studies and began a doctoral program at Stanford University, but was forced to return to Indonesia in 1962 due to a shortage of academic lecturers.

[1] Between his ascension from the secretary to the chairman of the engineering department, he attended a lecture on rocket propulsion at the University of Tokyo.

[2] On 16 February 1978, Wiranto was installed as a member of the ITB rectory, a collective leadership consisting of four assistant rectors.

[3] The rectory replaced the office of ITB rector after its last officeholder, Iskandar Alisjahbana, was ousted by the education minister due to his support for the anti-government student movement at that time.

[6] After a definitive officeholder for the rectorate was elected, Wiranto pursued a full-time career as the vice chairman of LAPAN.

[9] The incident happened when 17 students walked out and rejected the presence of Minister of Home Affairs Rudini when he was about to give a speech at the institute.

[11] After he handled this incident, Wiranto gained notoriety as an authoritarian rector due to his harsh stance on students and political activities.

His wife was the elder sister of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Edi Sudradjat, while his brother was the brother-in-law of First Lady Siti Hartinah.

However, the more liberal Justice Minister Muladi—who was also a rector before being appointed to the cabinet[a]—argued that there was no clear definition as to what constitutes "practical politics" and that the students have a right to protest within campus grounds.

[14] Shortly after this incident, Suharto resigned from his presidency on 21 May 1998, effectively dissolving the cabinet and ending Wiranto's tenure as minister.