Interview for Factor: GORAN VASILEV – Heidelberg Business Council will provide scholarships and secure work for students and trained staff for companies

FACTOR: A novelty in the educational process is the formation of the Heidelberg Faculty Business Council, aimed at strengthening cooperation between the academic community, students and the business sector. How will the cooperation be implemented and what role will it play in strengthening the relationship between the academic community and the business sector?

VASILEV: The officially formed Business Council currently consists of about twenty members, renowned companies from literally all industries, banks, non-banking financial companies, insurance companies, a pension fund, companies from the IT sector, manufacturing, construction companies, trading companies…Large  number of companies are in the final stage of joining.

This Council will play a key role in the entire concept of dual education, which we offer. All members of the Council, together with President Petar Taleski from SAVA Pension Company and Vice President Hristina Dzambazovska Anastasov from Triglav Life Insurance, will participate in the creation of curricula, and in accordance with the needs of the economy, they will provide internships for our students, offer scholarships and be future employers for our students.

FACTOR: How does the Heidelberg University scholarship program work and what opportunities does it offer students in terms of education and employment after graduation?

VASILEV: Companies from the Business Council will provide scholarships and internships, which will directly help students learn and apply their theoretical knowledge, which they will acquire at Heidelberg University, in practice, in a real, business environment. The concept is that our students will spend three working days in classes and two in internships. Given that most of the companies will provide scholarships to these students, they will also become their employees, with an obligation to work for them for a certain period after completing their studies. This will end the so-called “internship for signature”, when the majority of interns do not even show up for internships, but receive a signature that they attended internships.

The companies that provide scholarships select their scholarship holders themselves through a competition, together with professional support from the Faculty, and see them as future employees, and accordingly, their interest is to provide the best internship for them and practically get a good young employee, even during their studies. Some of our members of the Council even provide paid internships to students.

FACTOR: What is the concept of a double degree offered by the Heidelberg Faculty and how does this model improve the education and professional prospects of students?

VASILEV: The process of combined study and internship is a German model of education and functions excellently in the strongest European and one of the most powerful world economies. Our students will have the opportunity to spend the last semester at our partner universities in Germany, where they will prepare a diploma thesis, based on the knowledge and skills acquired during classes and practical work. And after successful completion and defense of the thesis, the student receives two diplomas, one Macedonian and one German, the same as a German student receives at a German faculty. At the Heidelberg Faculty in Skopje, most of the professors also come from Germany. And, our students, for Macedonian prices, receive a German education and diploma and full integration into the German educational system.

FACTOR: What are the biggest benefits for students who complete part of their education in Germany through Heidelberg University programs and how does this international experience affect their career development?

VASILEV: The opportunity to learn from renowned German professors, the same ones who have taught and are teaching future employees/managers in the strongest German companies, is priceless. Teaching and practice in an international environment will certainly provide students with top-notch experience and new horizons.

FACTOR: You have a rich work career, starting from the banking sector to a financial company, how does your previous corporate experience help you in leading Heidelberg University and what experiences from the corporate world do you apply in the educational process?

VASILEV: I spent twenty-three/four years in the world of finance, starting in one of the largest banks in Macedonia, from the lowest positions, all the way to the Manager of a renowned financial company. In parallel, for about fifteen years I was first a lecturer, then an Assistant Professor at one of our faculties. I spent this entire working journey in cooperation with companies from the real sector, supporting investments and businesses, and I was able to share my experiences with students at the faculty. In the last more than ten years, the biggest problem facing our country is the huge discrepancy between business and human resources. Namely, the economy is constantly looking for good staff, and students are looking for their happiness abroad. Macedonia is a leader in brain drain, while at the same time the import of labor from other countries and continents is advocated.

The biggest reason for this problem is poor education. Our faculties produce diplomas, not knowledge and skills. Our graduates apply for jobs with theoretical knowledge that they have never applied in practice, so employers have to train them from scratch, wasting time and money. I expect the Heidelberg Faculty in Skopje to offer a concept that will overcome this serious problem.

Link to the interview with Factor