PRESS RELEASE

Thessaloniki attracting foreign students:

The International University - education destination for Southeast Europe

February saw the third Executive MBA intake start their cycle of studies in the School of Economics and Business Administration. Despite the economic crisis, the increase in numbers of foreign students following the programme is striking. 40% of the students on the 2010-2012 programme are from abroad.

The increase in demand for postgraduate studies in the area of business education and training is a phenomenon common lately to top universities in Britain and the USA. During times of economic crisis, the conviction grows that personal investment in the development of business skills through the programmes of study at the best universities can provide the solution to personal development and career promotion.

In addition, the EMBA programme at the International University provides those working in business, particularly from the countries of the Balkans, with the opportunity to create professional networks and long-term relations with contacts from other countries, thus contributing to the development of initiatives and entrepreneurial thinking throughout the region of SE Europe.

Some of the largest companies in the region, such as the Commercial Bank of Greece, Alpha Bank, Titan Group, Coca Cola Hellenic and also the Central Bank of Albania have chosen to sponsor high-ranking members of their staff from Balkan countries to study at the International Hellenic University/

The IHU EMBA is a part-time post-graduate course. Participants follow courses over one three-day weekend each month (Friday-Sunday) for 24 months. Contact is maintained with the university by internet connection, which is also used as a teaching medium.

An innovation introduced with the programme is the Field Trip, during which students carry out consulting projects in non-governmental organisations (such as Arkturos, Doctors without Frontiers, the WWF, Child’s Smile, etc.) thereby both benefiting society and benefiting from significant practical experience.

Students also have the opportunity to gain useful professional skills through the professional development programme, while the integrating seminars provide students with information on current developments in various areas through the eyes of a specialist speaker.

The International Hellenic University, the first state university in Greece where English is the working language, was founded in 2005 and is based in Thessaloniki. It has three schools: the School of Economics and Business Administrtaion, the School of Science and Technology and the School of Humanities. Greece currently leads the table of countries in “exporting” students, according to OECD statistics, while attracting the lowest number of students from abroad. The International University aims to contribute to a reversal of that situation.