<![CDATA[Merdeka Belajar is promoted as a reform to simplify educational administration and strengthen school autonomy. However, its implementation reveals a paradox between policy discourse and administrative practice. This study examines the paradox of educational administration in the Merdeka Belajar era by analyzing the gap between normative simplification and school-level complexity in public secondary schools in West Java. Using a qualitative case study approach, data were collected through semi-structured interviews, document analysis, and observations, and analyzed thematically. The findings show that administrative simplification operates mainly at the policy level, while schools experience increased administrative workload due to fragmented digital systems and intensified accountability demands. Schools adopt adaptive strategies to manage these pressures, yet such practices remain informal and capacity dependent. The study contributes by reframing Merdeka Belajar as an administrative governance reform and highlights the need for integrated systems and capacity-sensitive policies to achieve substantive administrative simplification.]]>
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