Tenth anniversary of the Institute for the Development of Education
We are delighted to announce that the Institute for the Development of Education in Zagreb is celebrating its tenth anniversary today.
Since its launch in 1999, the Institute for the Development of Education (hereafter IDE) has succeeded in consolidating its position as the leading Croatian NGO in the field of higher education. Among the successes of IDE in the last 10 years we would like to highlight the following results:
- Advocating higher education policies: IDE has become increasingly influential in advocating higher education policies and participating in the policy-making process, including through its recent publication of policy recommendations for widening access to higher education in Croatia or through creating an action plan for Croatia’s entering into the European Union’s Erasmus programme. IDE representatives participate in the Croatian Government Council for Civil Society Development, the National Bologna Process Follow-Up Group, the Monitoring Committee for Human Resources Development within the Instrument of Pre-accession Assistance (IPA) and the Working Group for the Croatian National Action Plan for Employment.
- Support to university development and reform: IDE was the initiator of the first project aimed to launch career advising services in Croatia in 2005, which resulted with the launch of these services at the University of Dubrovnik in December 2008 and University the Rijeka in February 2009 and the University of Osijek in April 2009.
- Innovation and creation of educational brands: IDE launched the first Croatian national web portal on scholarships www.stipendije.info (which has the most comprehensive source of information on scholarships and mobility programmes in the region) as well as the unique Scholarships Fair, which is attended by over 6,000 visitors and which is celebrating its fifth anniversary this year.
- Information and advising expertise: IDE has become a national reference point to information and advising services on higher education opportunities and financial aid for studies in Croatia, the USA and Europe, attracting annually over 2,000 visitors, 12,000 queries and 900,000 web hits.
- Regional leader in standardised test services: IDE has become the leading organisation in the region of South Eastern Europe with regards to providing services related to international standardised tests (TOEFL, GMAT, SAT/GRE, etc.).
In addition to the achievements above, we are delighted to announce that in 2009 IDE will establish its own foundation, entitled the “Croatian-American Foundation for Education and Training”, in order to enhance the mobility of the Croatian academic community. The Foundation seeks to establish an important role for itself in Croatia not only as an organisation that fosters exchange between Croatia and the USA, but as part of Croatia’s civil society network influencing directions in Croatian education and broader policy objectives.
As recognition of the outstanding results achieved in the last 10 years, IDE has received support from and has cooperated with all the main stakeholders in higher education in Croatia: ministries and agencies in the field of higher education, the Croatian Rectors Conference and each of Croatia’s seven universities, as well as a range of student organisations.
IDE’s success and sustainability would not have been possible without the continuous support and cooperation of its wide network of international partners and associates, and without the generous support of its international donors. We would especially like to stress the importance of the long-lasting partnership with the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Embassy in Zagreb, who recognised the potential of IDE at a very early stage and have continuously helped us develop our expertise to become a renowned player in the field of higher education both at the national and international level.
We would therefore like to take this opportunity to express our deepest gratitude for the trust and support shown by all of our donors and partners, and we would hereby like to reaffirm our commitment to achieve the highest standards of quality in our work.
