C.I.R.T.

Research is an integral part of Metropolitan College’s vision. C.I.R.T. will offer research and data analysis assistance to academics and graduate students. Sessions will be available on specific statistical analysis methods, as well as the development of research topics.

Aiming to help students plan research projects, consultation services are available either one-to-one sessions, or workshops. Examples of topics are:

• How to conduct a research
• SPSS 1 (inputting data) & 2 (how to work the output generated),
• On-line surveys,
• T-test and One-Way Anova, Simple and Multiple Regression Analysis,Multivariate Analysis of variance, Factor Analysis, Discriminant Analysis, Logistic Regression, Introduction to Structural Equation Modeling using AMOS etc.

C.I.R.T. and the Akmi International (Member of AKMI Organization) are able to provide assistance to faculty members who want to apply for grants and seek funds to develop or assess a pilot project, initiate research, or involve students in innovative projects. Also, C.I.R.T. focuses on interdisciplinary collaboration in instruction and research among the various postgraduate programmes of studies.

With C.I.R.T. and Akmi International supporting the professional, academic, and scholarly needs of the faculty through the delivery of services that emphasize on student success and growth, through experiential learning and community engagement, grants would allow faculty the opportunity to explore and establish their reputation as experts in a particular discipline or process.

Grant recipients are strongly encouraged to publish the results of their pilot projects or research. The expectation is to build upon the obtained results and to seek additional funding opportunities to expand their research.

C.I.R.T. hopes to enhance the knowledge and practice of Metropolitan College’s graduate students. In this context, it introduces the C.I.R.T. speaker series. Distinguished speakers share their expertise regarding teaching, leading, learning and research. Examples of topics that C.I.R.T. speaker series will cover include:

Improving the design and delivery of online classes,
increasing participation and motivation,
providing real world experience etc.

Metropolitan College works with a variety of partners to develop projects that benefit both individual students and the community at large. Many of these projects utilize technology to strengthen existing partnerships that reach audiences anywhere, anytime.

Furthermore Metropolitan College, in collaboration with Akmi International, participates in various funded projects from the European Union (area of social development, human resources, education, labor markets etc., public administration reform and regional economic development).

The Graduate School through C.I.R.T. aims to create the appropriate environment in order to promote innovative ideas from academics and students, by:

a. implementing Master and PhD thesis and dissertations focusing on research and innovation with experienced supervisors,
b. having the mechanism to provide technical/technological support, assessment, and research guidance,
c. cooperating with Akmi International on grant writing and the development of ideas in a context that can be funded by EU or other funding organizations worldwide,
d. establishing annual conferences in various disciplines, as well as a Research & Innovation Symposium where our students and graduates have the space to present their projects to entrepreneurs or other stakeholders, interested to attend and provide guidance and support.

The experiential value of student employment is the heart of C.I.R.T.’s philosophy. Graduate Students who work for C.I.R.T. fill roles such as programmer, graphic artist, multi-media specialist, and research specialist while they learn an array of skills both technical and social, which can serve them well as they leave campus and move into the professional workplace. Through their work, they are immersed in a culture that expects professionalism, teamwork, and good oral communication.

While learning technical skills, they also improve their professional attitude by performing services for members of the campus community. As they work side by side with our full-time and part-time academic and professional staff, they co-operate as a group to solve complex problems and projects.
In this way, they learn by example and improve their personal and professional skills and attitudes. This hand-on experience and association with our staff provide students the opportunity to build teamwork skills, professionalism and good oral communication.

Our goal is to, annually, offer the opportunity to the top two graduates from the undergraduate programmes to apply for one of the available postgraduate programmes and become eligible to work as research assistants at C.I.R.T.