Within the conference, three panels and a round table were conducted.

In the first panel, on the state of research at the Prishtina University (UP), university professors teaching at the university stressed the need for more research activities, linking research with teaching and student involvement in research activities in the early phases of one’s study.

The second panel presented on the state of research for private providers of higher education, which produced several representatives from private providers of higher education in Kosovo* and the Director of the Kosovo* Accreditation Agency. Research activities, initiatives and measures taken by private providers of higher education were presented in an effort to stress the development of research in the interests of market needs. In the third panel, on the state of research in think tanks and civil society, members of some of the most active think tanks operating in Kosovo* stressed their role in research activities and the need for cooperation with universities. This led a discussion on the challenges of working in civil society and the think tank sector.

The roundtable entitled, “Trends and Challenges in Regional and international Cooperation in Research and Teaching”, offered some concluding remarks at the conference. UP professors, professors from the region and other European countries, representatives of the FP7 and Tempus programmes, as well as representatives from the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology of Kosovo* (MEST) and the Ministry of Education and Sciences of Albania (MASH) discussed the main challenges in the university and research sectors regarding transitional societies (such as Kosovo*), with the addition of future opportunities for cooperation in research and education.

Source: RRPP NEWSLETTER November 2012