'No short-cuts on American University' says education minister

The new rules published earlier this month allow the National Commission for Further and Higher Education (NCFHE) to invoke “national interest” as a criterion to recognize a new university; as well as reducing the minimum fields from six to four, in which higher diplomas, Bachelors’ and Masters’ degrees are offered.

They also remove the requirement to have at least four fields in which doctorate programmes are offered.
The law was tweaked three days after the signing of an agreement with Jordanian construction firm Sadeen to construct a private university, making it unproblematic for the NCFHE to green-light the AUM’s aspirations.

But Bartolo has insisted that AUM’s curricula – drafted by DePaul University of Chicago – will still undergo “a rigorous process” to receive accreditation. “I will be 100% committed to see that things are done by the book. I was the first in the past to attack bogus universities who ripped off students and I will definitely not allow any university to offer degrees which are not in line with international requirements and the Bologna Process,” Bartolo said.

The minister, a known advocate for transparency, also said he had no qualms with the way Labour had handled the Jordanian investment: there was no expression of interest for the university, or public tender for the siting of the university at Zonqor Point.

But Bartolo insisted that the government “never gave Sadeen any shortcuts to make their lives easier”, and that negotiations were still ongoing.

“This can in no way be compared to the Smart City negotiations where the government sold the land at a cheap price with clauses allowing the resale of land by the investors.”

Bartolo also said the Sadeen agreement would be published in due course. “It contains information which is commercially sensitive and it is not possible to publish it now due to ongoing talks between the parties involved.”