Nine undergraduate students at the Faculty of Economics, Management & Accountancy (FEMA) have just returned from Kosovo where they participated in a series of visits and activities related to heritage and cultural diversity as influences on business.

The project, Competent Student - Experienced Graduate, funded by the Polish Government through the NAWA programme, involves the participation of four universities in a consortium alongside the University of Malta: KU Leuven (Belgium), University of Haxhi Zeka (Kosovo), Tomas Bata University (Czech Republic) and University of Opole (Poland).

Prof. Frank Bezzina (Pro-Rector for International Development & Quality Assurance), Dr Emanuel Said (Dean, FEMA) and Prof. Vincent Cassar (Deputy Dean, FEMA) accompanied the Maltese students. The UM academics were instrumental in the creation of the partner networks having worked with all the other four partners long before the project was launched and more specifically during the deanship of Professor Bezzina.

This initiative has proved to be an important opportunity for the FEMA students and enable them to explore three important cultural dimensions, namely the national, cultural as defined by religious and historical aspects including defined ethnic groups, as well as culture defined by the natural habitat and the business culture.

During their stay in Peja, the UM students expanded their awareness and appreciation of multicultural realities at different levels, from an experience in a country that is dominated by a multicultural reality to working in multicultural teams. This development is consistent with the project’s overall objective: for tomorrow’s graduates to be prepared to work in corporate entities that host and exist in multi-cultural environments.