PRIVATE EDUCATION CHALLENGES KOSOVO

Nowadays you can not walk in the streets of Pristine without stumbling over new private schools, colleges and universities, based on private initiative and built in industrial zones and downtown as well. This year more than twenty private colleges and universities have received yearly licenses for various departments.

Private universities have mushroomed in Kosovo post war period. This new challenge has succeeded to absorb thousands of students and many professors. Better incomes for teachers but admittance fees sometimes are a real obstacle for students of Kosovo. Most of them are unemployed.

Zenun Totaj, second year student of Economy Banking and Finance at private College “Fama” pays 1300 euro a year for his studies. He comes from an eight member family from village Gjonaj, twenty km from Prizren city. His family runs a shop and his father Latif Totaj, works as a secretary in a primary school. His father earns a salary of 200 euros.

One year ago, Zenun, tried to register in Public University but he failed the test. Then he decided to apply for a Private University where there is no test. He says that the quality of studies in “Fama” is much better in spite of high costs.

Five new private education institutions have been licensed this year: College “Universum” nga Pristine, Veternik, Ecology Faculty – Shtrpce, College “Eurosport” – Bardhosh, The Academy for Advanced Studies Pristine and the Institute for Studies “Pjetër Budi”, Prishtina.

The Institute for Contemporary Studies ”Dardania”, located near the gymnasium in the road to Germia has prolonged the license for Bachelor in Economy, Law and Political Science departments.

The College of Art and Social Science (KASHS), has got the license in Economy, Law and Political Science Departments.

The Art Academy (AAB), located in exit of capital city, heading for Fushë Kosova, has prolonged the license in Mass communication. This year the academy got also the new license for Music, Figurative Arts and Applicative Arts departments.

The so-called Business and Technology University (UBT), located in Emshir Street in Pristine has prolonged the license for international department for Business and Technology, Computer and Engineering sciences.

The Medical University “Rezonanca”, located in suburb of Pristine, Veternik, has prolonged license for Departments of General Medical, Pharmacy, Physiotherapy Radiology and Dentistry.

University “Iliria” located in Sunny Hill, Pristine, has prolonged the license in Economy, International Business, Management and Informatics departments

College “Tempulli”, located in the street of Dragodan, Pristine, has prolonged the license in Road Traffic department.

The Academy of Arts has prolonged the license for acting department and this year it has got a license for General Pedagogy of Music.

Journalism School “Faik Konica”, located Ulpiana has got the license for second and third year.

It is still unclear, what is the exact number of all Private colleges and universities supplied with new licenses! Even the Ministry of Education hasn’t got the exact number yet

The young spokeswoman of the Ministry of Education, Mimoza Hasani, does not have a clue about the exact number. She said that a group of experts from the Ministry of Education is assessing the work of all the Education Institutions that have required a license or a prolongation to go on. The Ministry of Education very soon will come up with the exact information,’ spokeswoman Mimoza said.

Reacting questions about the uncontrolled growth, she continues: ‘The ministry of Education believes that establishing of an Accreditation Agency can help to implement the criteria for private institutions, in order to create good functionality and responsibility’.

The great number of private institutions, founded in Kosovo in the post war period, creates also new challenges. Asked whether Kosovo teachers and students see possibilities in the new phenomenon, they react.

In Pristina, I met the young Kosovo teachers Niman Dreshaj, 26, from village Vrella, Istog and his fiancé Vjollca Balevic from Ulcin, Montenegro. Last month, they found at last a well paid job. They used to work as teachers in a Kosovo public school. Now they exercise their professions in a new private school.

Niman, young and enthusiastic, comes from a poor ten member family, ninety kilometers far from Pristine. He moved to the capital to study and to find a good job and better prospective for him. Now he lives with his fiancé in a rented flat in Pristine. Being among one of Kosovo teachers, luck knocked at his door. Also Vjollca quitted her job from a public school to work in a private education institution.

Now he found a new job with the salary of about six hundred euro at the private university college ”Universum” , founded in November 2004 by the first private Kosovo college- “Aga Xhite” . It is located in the industrial zone, Veternik, in Prishtina. Vjollca had the same piece of luck to find a job in a private language school for children at” Language Learning Centre” in Prishtina

After his graduation in English Faculty, Niman, worked for three years in the public gymnasium” Sámi Frasheri” located in an old style building near the Kosovo National Museum. More than two thousands students have classes here. Vjollca worked in the public primary school ”Gjergj Fishta” near the park Germia were more than thousand pupils are registered. .

The reason of changing their working place is first a higher salary. But she also likes the new challenge to deal professionally with an appropriate teaching. In her old job, this was almost impossible. She describes her old public school as disastrous regarding the salary, the equipments and the overloaded classrooms.

In public schools there are a lot of discipline and equipment problems, which means also lower professionalism says Niman. ‘ The new Institute ’Universum’, is a specific university college with five faculties, featuring quality undergraduate and postgraduate programs within the socio-economic disciplines Business Administration, Public Administration with International Relations. And there is Law, Psychology, Arts, Sciences and Technologies integrated in one place’.

Vjollca tells about the very poor traditional Kosovo teacher’s salaries. She calls them disastrous. ‘There is no indication that incomes will improve. The salaries in private higher education are double, triple or more than that”, she says

Salaries in the public Primary and High school are approximately two hundred euro. In the public university it is around three hundred.
Private higher education after the war period has become a campaign for challenge against public education in Kosovo. Lot of students with good family’s income, and those who couldn’t enroll in public education schools have headed toward private institutions, Niman has experienced.

The new private colleges and universities have become part of general education in Kosovo. Private Education System during last years has succeeded to absorb thousands of students and many professors. But bureaucracy and politics are not always aware of the new developments.

The Spokeswoman of the Ministry Of Education, Science and Technology, Mimoza Hasani, considers private institutions as a positive initiative. But if these institutions don’t follow the legal regulation, than licenses will be taken away and sanctions will be imposed, she said.

‘The huge number of Private institution let raise a suspicion that these developments have become business for personal beneficiary’ says Hasan Muja , Deputy Dean of the Pedagogical Faculty in University of Pristine. In public university also time has been changing. The declaration of Bologna reforms is still going on in public education, The students of the public university will find open doors for Master and PhD studies and employment, abroad, said Muja

Niman, now teacher at a private school, also emphasizes suspicion. He thinks that some of the private higher educations have purely business motives. And in some schools absolutely are no criteria for registration.

The Ministry of Education believes that establishing of an Accreditation Agency will enable implementation of criteria of private institution programs. In this way good functionality and responsibility must be created, Mimoza Hasani, answered on behalf of the Education Ministry.

Fevzi Berisha , deputy Minister of Education, considers institution of public education as a higher level comparing it with the private education. He is not afraid for competition. He dares to say: ‘We didn’t have any case of a public university assistant or professor who left his job to work in any of these private institutions”. He considers the level of quality in Private Education Institutions as low. He even says to have suspicion about it.

Teacher Niman who deserted job, says that his private college possesses the license and qualified teachers. It offers good conditions and all necessary equipment in making good teaching class. It pays good salaries and all makes Niman feel comfortable and relaxed in a country that is in a very delicate and critical transition situation. “There is a fewer number of students in our private school, he realizes. They have therefore a greater opportunity to express themselves in an appropriate classroom. He also says that most of our students have good financial conditions in their families. That’s why they have chosen to be part of our private school.

Also, Vjollca hails her new job. ‘In our school we have all necessary conditions, comparing with the public which has a minimum supplies The prices here are a bit high but people send their children to the school to learn. And they pay good money for their studies, which means we get good money too”.

Many professors give lectures both at the public and private university, student Zenun from Gjonaj says: ‘The lectures in public university are of a poor quality, firstly, because of lack of motives from low salaries. And the other reason, is because there is a huge number of students in public university. You can easily see in the lecture hall there are about four hundred students while in our private there are about forty’, said Zenun.

“The professors have become supermen. They have at least five jobs at the same time. The public university is less prior place for them. The reforms should be implemented by the people who are involved in teaching and in education Institutions” said Bedri Berisha, student of English and political science department at public university. He added that there is only one projector quite old regarding to modern technology. And if it happens to have classes with the help of this equipment in order to present the lectures, they lose at least half of the lecture’s time just to make it function.

Students the reporter met during his visit in some private schools, say that most of the professors work in both private and public institution, but, they stay longer in the private school because of higher salaries.

A student tells about professor dr. Rifat Blaku, professor of Human Resource, Geo-politics and Geo-strategy who also teaches in a public university. He has also been spotted in private school Dardania and several other private universities. Professor Dr. Haki Demolli of Criminology also gives lectures in public university and several other private universities” said a student.

Taulant Ajazaj, 21, a second year student in Law at the public faculty, said that he decided to enroll in public institution because he thinks that criteria are stricter and that the diploma is recognized in many international countries. But still there are needed deeper reforms in improvement of relationship Professor –Student. ”Students at private universities can pass the exams easier from the same professors, who also work in public university” he said.

Abdullah Hoti, the advisor of education ministry, assesses the huge number of higher private education as a reasonable development in Kosovo. He hopes in future Kosovo student will have opportunities to find jobs. He believes that with the new private universities the percentage of educated people is increasing in Kosovo. “If we deal with statistics, the participation of Kosovo students from 18 to 24 year, in higher education is about 12 to14 percent. This percentage is double in region countries. In Europe it is fifty percent. In the United States even eighty percent. So, we can see that we have a huge gap of student’s participation in higher education” said Hoti.

Zenun’s Father, Latif Totaj, wants a better future for his son. He says now it is a very difficult situation, but, may be things will change in the future. He complains about the high amount of money that he should pay for his son’s studies and for his stay in Pristine. He emphasizes that everything is for his son’s future. ‘Today it is difficult to find a job, even worse if you are qualified. So, think about the chances for those who are not qualified”, he said

Niman and Vjollca say the Ministry of Education does not have a clear project to determine what departments and what quantity are needed in Kosovo. ‘Kosovo student’s expectations are not always guaranteed’, they know. The young couple decided to follow their own expectation. They left traditional public school to start a new future in private education.