On the Maritime Faculty Kotor Round Table Dedicated to Dual Education Held

A round table on topic "Potentials for dual studies in maintenance and stronger cooperation with the economy" was held today in amphitheater of the Kotor Maritime Faculty. The round table is part of the "Maintenance 2022" conference, which this year is being held in three coastal cities, Budva, Tivat and Kotor, from September 12 to 16, 2022.

Round table was organized with the support of the DUALMON project ("Strengthening the capacity for the implementation of dual education in Montenegrin higher education") and the DUALSCI project - ("Strengthening the capacity for the implementation of dual education in the higher education sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina"). In addition to a large number of representatives of the academic community, the gathering was attended by a large number of relevant representatives of the maritime industry and private companies from Montenegro, as well as the surrounding area.

In the introductory part, dean of the Kotor Maritime Faculty, prof. dr Špiro Ivošević presented the Faculty, its organization and main activities, after which prof. Darko Petković, professor of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Zenica, spoke about the current state of cooperation between university institutions and leading entities in the region and in Europe, as well as about current legislation and challenges in this regard.

It was followed by a very interesting and inspiring lecture by Professor Hagen H. Hochrinner from the University of Graz, who presented interesting trends and current projects within the European university community when it comes to dual education. It is expected that by 2024, Brussels will introduce a specific system of micro-credentials whose goal is the individualization of education and the creation and combination of higher education modules based on the needs of the students themselves and the concrete demand and requirements of potential employers. It is primarily about cooperation with small and medium-sized enterprises, and the goal is to open European universities according to the requirements of the industry, but also according to other higher education institutions. In this sense, it will be possible to combine study modules from various study programs and universities, which was previously unthinkable for certain fields. Such a flexible and inclusive study system will represent a faster and shorter path to achieving the desired learning outcomes. The goal is the affirmation and branding of European education and values, with a special emphasis on state universities, which would in this way prevent the primacy of private universities in terms of rapid specialization and cooperation with business entities. At the European level, a large number of projects in this sense have already been launched, at individual institutions and at the level of individual European countries. Prof. In this sense, Hochriner emphasized the project in which his home University in Graz is participating, along with 8 other European universities. The project called the European Universities Initiative aims to establish a system of micro-credentials between these Universities, within which students will have the opportunity to choose modules from different member universities. The goal of the project is the formation of the first dual European university, and the fact that the project is worth 18.5 million euros speaks of the importance that the European community attaches to these new standards that are imposed on higher education institutions that aim to be competitive at the European and world level, as well as more efficient higher education of future professionals on the international market. In the discussion that followed, special challenges in concrete potential relations with representatives of the economy, mutual obligations and obligations towards students were discussed. Professor Hökriner shares useful personal experiences and experiences of University of Graz students in cooperation with other European universities and industry representatives.