‘Don’t undermine University of Malta by comparing it to AUM’

The Prime Minister’s description of both the controversial American University of Malta and the University of Malta as “brilliant institutions”, effectively putting them on the same level, has prompted anger among students and lecturers. They say that comparing the two undermines the integrity of the University of Malta and its thousands of students. Joseph Muscat on Tuesday likened the AUM to the University of Malta, adding that he saw “traces of success” in the former, despite it having fewer than 20 students and very few, if any, lecturers. A spokesman for the University Students’ Council, KSU, told this newspaper: “As a students’ council we feel such comments hinder and undermine the long-standing success of the University of Malta.” He added that the students fear such comments put the university’s reputation at risk. “The University of Malta is a highly esteemed university at a global level, and seeing it compared to a university which just opened its doors and with just a few students enrolled does not do it justice,” the spokesman went on. The KSU believes that the two universities “can never be compared”, especially since the UoM is a State university, while the AUM is...