Education

Sarajevo - Your Next Educational Destination

In preparations of Sarajevo Business Forum (http://www.sarajevobusinessforum.com) 2011 an initiative (Project) has been launched by the Forum to position Sarajevo as a Regional Center for University education. The Project implies annual enrollment of 20,000 students to Sarajevo universities.

 
Written by: Amer Bukvić

Sarajevo, a city with multi-century university tradition where each year more than 1,500 new students enroll from abroad, with the support from local administration and small investment could become a regional education center where even up to 20,000 young people from other countries could study every year.
Sarajevo Business Forum (SBF) equally takes into account the development of the economy, the advancement of educational system, and change of the image of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H). It proposes commencement of the Project from the academic year 2011/2012. This Project entails enrolling in Sarajevo universities a large number of foreign students, which would contribute to the development of the City, B&H in its various segments and would advance not only its reputation but also the reputation of the country as a whole.


Education in English language

Before the SBF decided to present this initiative, it reviewed carefully the situation in the universities of Sarajevo, their abilities and capacities, as well as the situation in the City itself, its infrastructure, security conditions and level of observance of national, religious and cultural differences, and concluded that Sarajevo has all necessary predispositions.
What is very important and alleviates the realization of this idea, is actually the fact that Sarajevo has five universities where courses are being held in English language and they are: American University in B&H, International Burch University, MIT Center University of Sarajevo, International University of Sarajevo, and Sarajevo School of Science and Technology.
Each of those universities would according to this initiative be specialized for one study area (Medicine, Electrical Engineering, Economy, International Relations, etc.), in accordance with the assessment of current quality respectively and the standards required by the European Union.
 

Larger revenues, lower administration obstacles

With the realization of the initiative, Sarajevo and B&H would acquire huge benefit. Every year we would have extra 20,000 foreign inhabitants, which inevitably would contribute to increase of air flights, railway and other transportation, the consumption in restaurants and sale spots, increase the number of tourists, etc. If we take that every student is visited by his/her parents at least once a year, we will get additional 40,000 tourists in the City. All that requires additional efforts for construction of new capacities, reconstruction of infrastructure, more engagement by the state and private entrepreneurship sectors, and many more. But, isn’t that an intention of every country who wishes to develop and advance?
What is maybe more important is that higher education standards would be set, motivation for faster and easier validation of graduation diplomas would be initiated because many university professors from abroad would be engaged, emigrated “brains” would return to the mainstream, Diaspora could send their children who do not longer speak our domicile languages to studies in Sarajevo, scientific institutes would be established, new libraries and laboratories opened, economy would benefit from new researches while knowledge based on economy would be created. And all that would contribute to improvement of image of B&H and its capital city in international circles and easier investments attraction. Stories of B&H and Sarajevo as place of conflicts and riots would sink in oblivion and this would become desirable destination for acquiring knowledge.
 

Knowledge is money and reputation

Naturally, question why we believe that foreign students would come to Sarajevo to study and that this Project could become a reality is raised.
In favor of it are facts that speak for Sarajevo, a city which had high-education institution 45 years after discovery of the America, a European City with multicultural tradition; a city where there is no discrimination of students or anyone else because of his/her national, ideological or any other affiliation (in the classrooms in Sarajevo covered girls sit together with others and there are others who dress very differently); a city which has cultural events for different tastes and generations; a city that is only three hours driving from the Adriatic sea; a city with airplane links to major European cities, including Istanbul. Besides that, throughout history, Sarajevo has been known for its University Center that had been attracting large number of students. B&H and the former Yugoslavia in time of Socialism were well-known as study destinations of many foreign students, especially from “Nonaligned nations”. At one time Tito (long-time president of Yugoslavia) used to highlight Sarajevo as an example of a multinational and multicultural center that was receiving foreign students with its arms wide open.
Naturally, one should keep in mind the fact that some countries have very limited capacities at its universities and Sarajevo could accommodate one part of those students. I will quote an example from Turkey where a million and 600,000 young people apply for enrolment each year and the universities can receive only 300,000. That means that the end goal of our initiative of 20,000 students is only 1.5 percent of the number of students who cannot enroll in the Turkish universities.

(Note: the author of this is the CEO of Bosna Bank International, the Bank that is one of organizers of the Sarajevo Business Forum)