University of Nicosia wants to attract more students, boost research in Cyprus

The University of Nicosia, formerly Intercollege, one of the three private colleges that was granted university status by the government, wants to play a key role in helping Cyprus become a truly international centre for education by attracting more students and increased emphasis on research.

The university’s Executive President Dr. Nicos Peristianis and Rector Dr. Michalis Attalides told the Financial Mirror in an exclusive interview following last week’s cabinet decision that “25 years of academic excellence through hard work since Intercollege was founded has been finally recognized by the Cyprus government.”

For the student, the changeover will not be felt immediately since during the last five years Intercollege had embarked on a major restructuring programme that saw it operating as a university, offering high quality academic services and organizing itself academically with departments, schools, a Senate with elected faculty and a Council.

University of Nicosia, known in Greek as Panepistimio Lefkosias, will now be able to participate in EU and global academic associations, such as the European Universities Association, and after the four-year probation period during which time its programmes will be scrutinized by the Evaluation Committee for Private Universities, become a totally independent academic institution.

 

— Four schools

 

Dr. Attalides said that the University of Nicosia has been organized into four schools of Humanities, Social Science and Law, School of Sciences, School of Business Administration and School of Education.

The Business School will offer five undergraduate courses in marketing, hotel and tourism, hospitality, sports and business administration, in addition to the post-graduate Master of Business Administration (MBA).

Intercollege will continue to exist in Nicosia, Larnaca and Limassol, and will offer two-year diplomas and the professional studies courses such as ACCA, CFA as well as the more occupational-oriented courses including culinary arts, office management and other specialized subjects.

Students completing two-year diploma courses at Interollege in Limassol and Larnaca will be able to transfer to the University of Nicosia to complete a four year degree programme.

 

— Attracting students

 

Dr. Peristianis said the University of Nicosia currently has 5,000 students enrolled, 80% of whom are Cypriots.

“Our infrastructure capacity can accommodate many more,” he said, adding that the university is now aiming to increase the number of both Cypriots and international students.

Dr. Attalides said that with 55% of Cypriot secondary school graduates heading abroad to attain university degrees, the prospects of attracting more Cypriots is now an immediate target, while efforts are also underway to increase the number of international students, who are mostly coming from neighbouring countries, the Far East (India, Pakistan and China), East Europe, Russia and the former CIS Republics.

 

— Competitive disadvantage

 

Dr. Peristianis said Cyprus universities are operating at a comparative disadvantage in view of the fact that they receive no aid from the state, whereas other EU privately-run universities receive massive financial or other aid.

The University of Nicosia, with a 40% share of the Cypriot market will not change its fee scale, which currently hovers around CYP 4.000-4.500 and is its only source of financing.

The new university’s annual budget amounts to CYP 12 mln (EUR 20.5 mln), of which 50% is spent on salaries, 15% on scholarships, some CYP 600.000 annually on rent of facilities, CYP 750.000 on recruitment, promotion and advertising. All net proceeds are reinvested with the owning company, Edex-Educational Excellence Corp. Ltd., held by Peristianis and ten other locals not receiving any dividends or share of profits.

 

— Research

 

“The increase in quality of education never ceases here,” said Rector Attalides, adding that since five years ago a major effort has been underway to upgrade the faculty standards, so that only PhD holders have been recruited. For others who were not, help was provided in order to attain the required standards.

“Our quality depends on continually improving our teaching and our research output,” Attalides said, which is why faculty are encouraged to do research and publish their work in international journals. He believes that education and research are a primary input to economic development, especially for a service oriented economy like Cyprus.

University of Nicosia research already qualifies for EU funding and the university participates in various EU programmes, but both Peristianis and Attalides believe Cyprus should do more to meet the EU objective of becoming the most dynamic knowledge based economy in the world by 2010, by investing heavily in research and commit at least 3% of GDP to such projects.

Cyprus currently spends far less than 1% of GDP on research.