Overview
Kosovo's Ministry of Education designs its requirements for higher education around the standards of the Bologna Process, which is a series of agreements between 48 European countries that seeks to establish consistency in the quality of European higher education. The country is still not technically a member of the Bologna process since it broke from Serbia in 2008. Despite this, the country still attempts to adhere to the Bologna Process's standards so that their undergrad students have the opportunity for graduate study at schools across Europe.
RIT Kosovo (AUK)
Rochester Institute of Technology, an American university in New York, has a campus in Pristina, which is also known as the American University in Kosovo (AUK). It was founded immediately after the Kosovo war as a way to "honor and memorialize the great role the United State played in the conflict" (RIT Kosovo). Its mission is to help improve Kosovo's economy, society, and democratic institutions by providing a career-oriented American education. It provides students in Kosovo and surrounding countries with the opportunity to earn a degree that is accredited all over the world for a much lower cost than attending a university on U.S. soil. No other university in the country offer such a degree.
This university offers degrees related to business, public policy, graphic design, and computer science. All courses are taught in English. Students also have the option to get concentrations in English, where they study linguistics, creative writing, and English literature. The university is a stronghold for American power in the country. Of the five members of its academic senate, three have studied at American graduate schools and/or worked for the United States government. |
(http://kosovo.rit.edu/)
|
Funding for RIT Kosovo
The United States Agency for International Development provides significant funding for RIT Kosovo. The agency specifically sponsors a program called the American University Prep Program (AUPP). AUPP's purpose is to raise English language proficiency and strengthen mathematical skills. The stated goal of the program is to raise Kosovo's socio-economic development by training students to become leaders in Kosovo; however, one should not that in implementing this program, the United States will have strong ties to Kosovo's leaders, and therefore strengthen its political power in the region.
|
|
International Business College MitrovicaThe International Business College at Mitrovica (IBCM) is a business school in Kosovo that offers Bachelor's and Associate degrees in marketing, public administration, and environmental management. The guiding philosophy in their coursework is "From Theory to Practice," which is reminiscent of the Cal Poly "Learn by Doing" motto. All courses are taught in English at the college. Although the college does not have a degree in English, it has an English department. This department provides classes called "Academic English and Study Skills," which are a mandatory part of every students' curriculum. The aims of these classes are to teach English for practical use in whichever study program the student is pursuing. They offer one on one support when necessary and train students for exams such as the TOEFL.
In addition to these classes, IBCM's English department also provides free English prep courses for currently matriculated IBCM students who feel the need to improve their English. Another program the department offers is called the English Academy, which is for high school students. This program gives students the opportunity to practice their English in a relaxed setting, guided by a native speaker of English. |
Funding for ICMBThe European Union is one of the primary donors for the International Business College at Mitrovica.
Despite the British Exit from the European Union in 2016, English remains an important language for communication between members of the EU (. Modiano documents how English is the second language of around 38% of all people in the EU member countries, and that number is expected to rise, as "the youth of Europe are acquiring proficiency in English at an unprecedented rate"(2017 p. 319). Albanian, on the other hand, is not one of the EU's 24 official languages. It is therefore in the interest of the European Union to fund an English language school in Kosovo, because it will help improve trade relations between. Graduates from the IBCM will have knowledge in business and be able to communicate with other European Union members. |