By Sanja Čović
Dean's List is a superior academic achievement for all RIT
Croatia students who obtain GPA 3.4 or
higher and every semester, a special dinner is organized in order to celebrate
this success. Having the Dean's List status is an indicator of hard work as a
result of a long-term dedication and continuous learning, but also a motivation
to continue pursuing that hard work.
"Students’ success is
also our success”, mentions Dr. Irena Guszak Cerovečki, the Associate Dean at
RIT Croatia Zagreb Campus. "And this year there has been an increase of
students to make the Dean’s List- which I believe, innovation and creativity
contributed to this”, she adds. At RIT Croatia both students and academic staff
are committed to success and that is what motivates and drives students to
achieve their goals. They become more confident by seeing they have the support
and that confidence is crucial in preparing them for the successful
accomplishments of their goals. Our professors’ aim is to get us to think from
a different angle, because they encourage us to think critically, as well as to
observe and evaluate things by ourselves- or in other words, to become more
left-brained.
Our student Marko Sporiš, who can be proud of his continuous
Dean’s List status and has recently been honored to have the role of Career
Education Day Volunteer Supervisor, claims he is a dedicated student, because
he primarily has good abilities in terms of listening and avoids distractions
during classes. He learns the majority of things through interacting in class,
and he is grateful to be able to study on a smaller campus where there is not a
big number of students. "In this way, we all get to speak up and share
thoughts. We learn that there are many aspects and there is no such thing as
right or wrong, as long as we can critically evaluate topics we are discussing.
Moreover, professors are always there for us to clarify any uncertainties.”
Our student Niko Katušić also shared his viewpoints
regarding the Dean’s List. He is a hardworking and committed individual, who
along with having this status as a result of his excellent grades, also
demonstrates thorough commitment to his college by being Vice President of RIT
Croatia Student Government in Dubrovnik (which is in charge of organizing
activities for students and improving the quality of the students’ life), by
being the Chair of the "Dinburger Charity Evening” (an event entirely organized
and administered by our students), as well as Director of marketing of ETA
Sigma Delta International Hospitality Management Society, which recognizes
achievements of hospitality students. Niko claims that Dean’s List meant a lot
to him the first time he received it, because he felt like being a part of an
acclaimed group of students. He says that RIT Croatia completely changed his
mind set, due to its dynamic atmosphere. At high school, he used to be shy and
reserved, but RIT Croatia helped him speak up because of different,
individualized student approach, and he is thankful for all the encouragement
he receives there. He thinks it is amazing to manage to be one of the top
students, exactly because of his overwhelming schedule and loads of
obligations. But how does he manage it? He says that it is important to always
elaborate a plan and develop good organizational skills- then everything is
possible. "And above all, you have to
enjoy being an RIT Croatia student, and always tend to extract the best things
out of any of the given opportunities here. By doing so, you will become a successful student and an independent
individual, capable of facing new challenges.”
Our IT students believe they have an incredible advantage
because of the fact there are even less students enrolled in their program, so
they all get to know each other and work in team successfully. "I always have
the need to do things properly and that is why I work very hard. My primary
goal is to do my best in every situation I face, and that led me to the Dean’s
List status”, explains Mateo Lučić, one of our IT students.
Our Associate Dean at the Dubrovnik campus, Dr. Francis
Brassard, mentions that students get their motivation by being exposed to real
business environment, such as that through our Career Education Day, which is
organized on an annual basis, and is a unique networking opportunity for RIT
Croatia students in order to find potential employers and inform about new
career opportunities and innovations on Croatian and global marketplace. He
believes the interactions between students and employers are crucial for
students’ success.
Apart from the Dean’s List, at RIT Croatia students with the
highest GPA get to compete for Valedictorian status. During the introductory
speech, our Dean announced the two students from Dubrovnik campus who have been
honored the Valedictorian this year, Antonela Topić and Ana Marija Trojić. They
will be invited to an additional dinner and will get to choose their favorite
professor to join them in this celebration. Again, this outcome is an indicator
that the main role of a high academic achievement is to reward students for
their outstanding academic performance, but it is not just about admiring the
accomplishments- it is, above all, a motivator to push forward and go beyond.