Prague College Celebrates 10 Years

Expats.cz spoke with Prague College director and one of its original founders Douglas Hajek. We asked him about the major milestones from the past decade he remembers most.

“In 2005, when we were accredited to offer Edexcel Higher National Diploma programs; in 2008, when we introduced the full 3-year degrees and 2009, with the founding of the research center,” he said. “The research center happened faster than we thought it would but the faculty really had the energy to lead it.”

“I believe a university has to do research on the subjects it teaches,” Hajek said. In addition to research—research that is closely tied to the student learning experience—the center also strives to encourage multi-disciplinary connections between the college’s three schools, faculty and students. The center holds annual conferences and publishes research twice a year. Hajek puts heavy emphasis on the teaching experience, but knows the value of ongoing relevant research to the students and school as a whole.

“It starts with teaching, the learning experience, and having teachers committed to teaching, but engaged with research and bringing that into the classroom,” he said. “You need a balance between academic and professionals, but it must be anchored on the academic side.”

Another aspect of the school Hajek believes makes it stand out is the emphasis put on real world learning. The school focuses on an experiential approach to education to ensure the employability of graduates. And it must work—in 2011, Prague College graduates reported 100% employment or continuing their educations.

“Now is a key moment. We are at the end of a long start-up period and have the chance to look further,” he said. “I have an ambitious version of the future, but we are ready for it.”

Part of that vision includes increasing the number of students to 3,000 per year, and opening a fourth school. Hajek won’t say what that school will be, but the school plans to make the announcement in the fall with classes to start being offered the following year. Throughout 2014, the school will be celebrating. In March there’s a job fair and Finance Forum; June sees a Making Connections conference, while in September, the bulk of the activities will happen, including the inauguration of the International Advisory Board and the European Association of International Education conference.

For the next ten years though, the overall goal of Prague College is simple, according to Hajek.

“We are committed to building our reputation as one that represents excellence.”

Related articles