Information on the Institution
Name
P.A. College
Address
Corner of Faneromenis Ave. and Kalvou Str.
P.O. Box 40763
6307 Larnaca, Cyprus
Academic Calendar
The academic year is divided into two main semesters (Fall and Spring), each of them with duration of 15 weeks (September/October through May/June) and one Summer term that has a duration of 7 weeks (June through July).
Academic Authorities
The organisational chart of the College as well as the reporting structure can be accessed in the prospectus of the College.
Director
Dr Andreas Z. Patsalides
Tel. + 357 24 021555
Email: director@pacollege.ac.cy
Course Coordinator
Professor Demetris Toumbas
Tel. + 357 24 021555/ 24 021507
Email: d.toumbas@pacollege.ac.cy
Head of Business and Administration Department
Professor Filippos Loizou
Tel. + 357 24 021555/ 24 021516
Email: f.loizou@faculty.pacollege.ac.cy
Acting Head of Business Computing Department
Mr. Kyriakos Shiallaros
Tel. + 357 24 021555/ 24 021523
Email: k.shiallaros@faculty.pacollege.ac.cy
General Description Of The Institution
P.A. College is a private institution of Higher Education in Larnaca, Cyprus. The College, which commenced operation in 1983 at its 6 Makarios III Avenue, Larnaca site, was set up to provide a high standard of tertiary level (higher) education and since then has achieved an outstanding reputation in Management, Accounting, Banking, Business and Computing Studies.
P.A. College has relocated in a modern building with state of the art facilities. The new building is only a few minutes walk from the Faneromeni Church and is conveniently located away from the traffic of the centre but very close to all the main highways connecting Larnaca with the rest of the country.
The premises of the College in the Faneromeni area are fully operational since January 2007. The modern building has dramatically improved the facilities available to faculty and students and has marked the beginning of a new era for the College.
The programmes offered by P.A. College have a common characteristic of relevance to modern life and the community through their close relationship with industrial, professional and business operations.
Among the various achievements of the College is the securing of professional exemptions from esteemed international bodies for its graduates. In most cases, the College was the first in Cyprus to be provided with these exemptions which have been the maximum allowable by the regulations of these bodies. The accreditation of its main programmes by the national authorities, the international recognitions as well as its active participation in research and community activities and projects, enhance the proactive quality assurance approach shared by the College.
The College has also been active in various incoming and outgoing mobility activities (student, teaching and staff) and has received approval for the Erasmus University Charter. The College has applied both for the DS Label as well as for the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) approval.
Through the activities of its Student Union, the College has undertaken initiatives for the collection and distribution of food and other basic needs supplies to families in the Larnaca area that are suffering as a result of the economic crisis in Cyprus.
More details about the College can be found through its website at www.pacollege.ac.cy
The vision of P.A. College
The vision of P.A. College is to remain a leading institution of academic and research excellence.
The mission statement of P.A. College may be succinctly stated as:
“Create an excellent learning environment through the pro-active encouragement of the highest standards in teaching, research, leading-edge technologies, highly-qualified research-active staff and student support services, enabling every student to fulfil their full potential in terms of personal development, intellectual capabilities, life-skills, professional standing and long-term career aspirations.”
List of Programmes Offered
PROGRAMMES OFFERED BY P.A. COLLEGE
The following P.A. College programmes are registered with the Ministry of Education and Culture:
BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
(4 YEARS FULL-TIME OR 5 YEARS PART-TIME, BACHELOR OF ARTS (HONS))
BUSINESS COMPUTING
(4 YEARS FULL-TIME OR 5 YEARS PART-TIME, BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONS))
General Admission Requirements
Entry Requirements
Students admitted to the degree level registered programmes of study must show evidence of adequate ability in the use of English, should normally be at least 17 years of age and must possess one of the following:
i. A sixth form Secondary School Leaving Certificate with an average of at least 80% and a working knowledge of English as may be demonstrated through an appropriate oral test, or
ii. An average of at least 75% to less than 80% in the Secondary School Leaving Certificate plus a minimum of 4 GCSE/GCE passes including English Language and a numerate subject (Mathematics, Statistics or Accounting) of which one must be at "A" level. Only grades A, B and C are acceptable, or
- A minimum of five GCSE/GCE passes including English Language and a numerate subject (Mathematics, Statistics, Accounting) of which at least two must be at "A" level. Only GCSE/GCE grades A, B and C are acceptable, or
- Students possessing the P.A. College Diploma in Business Administration or Diploma in Business Computing (currently Computing and Information Systems) or Certificate in Business and Information Technology are entitled to enrol onto the College's Honours Degree level programmes, provided they achieve satisfactory average performance during their Diploma or Certificate studies.
The appropriate College authorities will assess the student's record and performance before a final decision is made regarding the programme offered to the student and the amount of credit units awarded to the particular student.
- Candidates possessing a sixth form Secondary School Leaving Certificate with an average of at least 60% will be required to attend a short course of English Language, Mathematics and Statistics, and Accounting for a period of four weeks before the official commencement of the academic period. The results of the formal examination attended by the student at the end of the course will determine whether the student is admitted or not onto the programme.
- Any qualification officially deemed to be equivalent to the above.
General Arrangements for the Recognition of Prior Learning
Non-International Students
Students who have interrupted their studies in other recognised by the Ministry of Education and Culture institutions may be accepted at the College as transfer students provided that:
- They have passed the exams in the other institution;
- They have achieved an overall average mark of 60% or higher;
- The programme attended at the other institution and the programme at P.A. College are compatible;
- The corresponding credit units recognised are decided after thorough examination of his/her transcripts;
- References from the previous institution may be requested before the final decision is made;
- In all cases, students admitted onto any of the P.A. College programmes cannot transfer more than 50% of the credit units required towards completing a particular programme.
International Students
Students who are in Cyprus on a student visa and wish to transfer from one institution to another or from one academic programme to another are required to secure the prior approval of the Ministry of Education and the Migration Authorities. All the details and procedures are determined by these authorities and may be subject to review and change.
Mature Students
Mature individuals who have had a number of years in the industry associated with relevant professional experience and qualifications and who may decide to undertake further formal studies may be admitted at the College after the College authorities consider their original and subsequent qualifications and their experience. These will affect the year onto which such students will be admitted and which will not exceed the 50% of the requirements of the programme they have applied for.
General Registration Procedures
Enrolment/Registration
Registration implies the payment of the registration fees and at least 50% of tuition. Students who fail to register by the days specified above may be asked to pay a late registration fee of €90,00 over and above any other fees they have to pay.
Please note that in April/May, students are required to provide an indication of their intentions in the form of pre-registration (consultation also takes places in October/November for Spring Semester). This is necessary in order for the college to make its plans in due time, to secure the necessary equipment and most importantly to hire additional staff members if necessary.
In addition, before the end of each semester, the list of books to be used in each module for the following semester is posted. The students are invited to provide an indication of their intentions concerning the purchase of textbooks. Definite orders of books are considered those which are accompanied with the pre-specified payment. These will be processed and forwarded to the publishers, so that books arrive in time for the new academic period. Students who fail to order by the specified date will be required to secure copies of the various textbooks on their own.
Registration Time-frames
(a) Registration of New Students
The official registration period for new students commencing their studies in Fall begins in July. Registration of new students for an academic period may continue until the end of the second week of classes for the Fall and Spring semesters, and up to the end of the first week of classes for the Summer term. Registration of new students for an upcoming academic period can take place any time before the commencement of the particular period within the timeframe given above, provided that the student can successfully complete the registration procedure as specified in the regulations.
(b) Registration of Returning Students
Returning students will be notified in advance for the registration days applicable to each upcoming academic period. Dates and details will be published in the Prospectus issued by the College annually, and/or posted on the College announcement boards, and/or distributed to the students. Registration for returning students will normally take place during the first week of September for the Fall semester, and the last week of January for the Spring semester, unless otherwise specified by the Registrar and officially announced to students well in advance. A change of modules a student registers for in a given semester, may take place up to the end of the second week of classes for the particular semester.
Registration of returning students for an academic period may also continue until the end of the second week of classes for the Fall and Spring semesters, and up to the end of the first week of classes for the Summer term. In this case, students who fail to register by the specified dates will be asked to pay a late registration fee.
Students may be asked to pre-register for the following semester/term so that the College can secure the necessary resources and tools in order to respond satisfactorily to student demand deviations from the original plans of the College.
Enrolment/Registration Procedure
(a) All applicants must satisfy entrance and other specified requirements for the programmes to which they wish to be admitted.
(b) A student is a person enrolled by the College to follow a programme on a full-time or a part-time basis.
(c) A student once enrolled remains a student until:
- the completion of his/her studies or
- possible withdrawal;
provided the enrolment of the student has not been cancelled by the College as the result of the student being expelled.
(d) All students are required to register each academic period prior to the commencement of their programme for that period (semester/term). All students have to register for FALL and SPRING semesters. The times and procedures for registration are determined by the College and announced to students in advance.
Registration is not complete until:
- The student has properly completed an admission/enrolment application.
- The conditions of entry to the programme, including the verification of qualifications have been satisfied.
- A College form has been satisfactorily completed and signed by the student agreeing to abide by all of the College's rules and regulations.
- Full payment has been made of all fees.
- Any other administrative procedures which may be determined from time to time by the College, have been satisfied.
(e) Students who, for personal reasons, wish to interrupt their studies, must seek the approval of the Director. Such intention should be confirmed in writing.
(f) Students who have outstanding financial commitments to the College will face any or all of the following consequences; these students will not
- normally be allowed to re-register for the next semester;
- be entitled to any payment arrangements/financial benefits granted by the College;
- be allowed to take any final examinations during the particular period;
- be provided with the results of their examinations for the given period;
- receive their progress report or title of study/transcript until they settle their account in full.
(g) Students must notify, in writing, the Academic Registrar of any change of name or address or other facts given on their application/enrolment form.
(h) In the event of a student's registration being cancelled, the student shall be informed in writing.
International Students
The application for a student visa needs to be accompanied by the following documents (documents must be translated from the original language into Greek or English):
- Readable and confirmed/stamped copy of a valid passport or other valid travel document. The passport/document should be valid at least for the expected duration of the study programme or for at least two years.
- In case the applicant student is a minor, parental consent is required.
- Non-criminal record certification by the student’s national authorities.
- Confirmed health certificate along with medical tests for tuberculosis, hepatitis B and C, syphilis, HIV/AIDS. The validity of the certificate should not exceed the period of four months.
- Confirmation of admission to a tertiary education institution to study for a programme of studies including a description of the programme and its duration.
- Confirmed recent certification (not longer than six months) by a banking institution in the student’s country, confirming that the student is able to pay the required fees and living expenses. In case the student was awarded a scholarship, the necessary documents should be submitted including reference to the institution providing the scholarship and if this is based in the country of the student. The bank certification must be accompanied by a statement of bank account showing a balance of at least €7000 for the month before the submission of the application.
- Academic qualifications records confirmed by the issuing institution. In addition to the formal certificate, an analytical transcript – indicating individual marks – should be provided.
- Payment of the relevant fee of €85,43.
Confirmation of the documents from countries that have signed the 1961 Hague Convention implies the bearing of the Apostille seal which does not have to be translated.
In other cases, the documents must be confirmed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the student’s country of origin and then validated by the Diplomatic mission of the particular county in Cyprus, or the Diplomatic mission of Cyprus in the specific country.
Documents must be translated in Greek or English either by the Public Information Office (PIO) in Cyprus or an approved translator. The translated documents must be confirmed as described above.
Documents from Russia and Serbia are not subject to confirmation as long as they are duly signed and stamped by the issuing state authority. Documents submitted by candidates from China need to be validated by the Chinese Ministry of Justice in which case the diplomatic/consular confirmation is not required.
Upon arrival the above documents must be submitted along with the presentation of a valid passport, the visa document, and the amount of $2400 or €2000 in cash. The application for a Resident’s Permit requires the submission of a copy of a valid passport, a health and accident coverage insurance, a health certificate and X-rays stamped and signed by a State Hospital Doctor, a local bank certificate that the amount of at least €5000 has been transferred/wired in the student’s personal account to cover his/her fees and living expenses (in addition to the €2000 in cash presented at the airport upon arrival). Furthermore, a bank guarantee by the academic institution undertaking to cover the repatriation expenses of the student, two passport size photos as well as the payment of the amount of €68,34.
Prospective students from the countries listed below should attend personal interviews held at the Embassies of Cyprus in their countries:
- Bangladesh
- China
- India
- Nepal
- Pakistan
- Sri Lanka
Further information: 0
Office of Admissions.
Tel.: + 357 24 021555, Fax: + 357 24 628860
E-Mail: info@pacollege.ac.cy
ECTS Credit Allocation Based on the Student Workload Needed in Order to Achieve Expected Learning Outcomes
The restructuring of the module syllabi at P.A. College started about five years ago with a number of meetings taking place between the College faculty and Bologna Experts who provided guidance regarding the use and the conversion to ECTS.
One of the major tools used was the Tuning methodology and feedback from the students, employers, professional associations, external academics and the faculty of the College was incorporated into the considerations. Reference was also made to similar degree programmes and courses of other universities, in order to ensure that the conversion attempted was in line with the standard practice in Europe, reflecting the emphasis on Learning Outcomes and making student workload as measured by both faculty and students, as the focal point of the programmes.
According to the guidelines and specifications provided, the ECTS allocation for the various modules sums up to 240 ECTS (30 ECTS per semester, 60 ECTS per year) for the Bachelor Degree programmes (1st Cycle) whereas, programmes of shorter duration carry the corresponding required ECTS load requirement (60 ECTS for Certificate level programmes or 120 ECTS for Diploma level programmes).
The most important features of the procedure employed include the performing of the analysis of each module by the individual faculty member responsible for the module (using the forms and guidelines of the Tuning Project), the incorporation in the “equation” of the feedback provided by the students who completed the forms with the relevant information, the submission of the forms to the Head of each department and then the cooperation of the Department Heads for the finalisation of the ECTS allocation for each module. A determining factor was the restriction to 30 ECTS per semester along with the fact that the learning outcomes for each module as well as consideration of all the parameters involved in the delivery of each module (class lectures, work in the labs, individual student study, library study, etc.) plus the time needed for the assessment element of each module (time required for the completion of assignments and projects, midterm examinations, oral exams/presentations, final exams, etc.).
Diploma Supplement
Each title of study issued by the College is accompanied by the Diploma Supplement which is issued to graduating students free of charge. The language used for the Diploma Supplement is English, which is also the official language of teaching and assessment at the College. This document represents an integral companion to a higher education diploma and provides a standardized description of the nature, level, context, content and status of the studies that were pursued and successfully completed by the graduate.
The Diploma Supplement was adopted in order to provide on a Europe-wide basis a common reference in a standardised form that students, academic institutions and employers could use. It also enables and facilitates academic and professional recognition of qualifications (diplomas, degrees, certificates).
More information is provided in the relevant section of our website homepage where examples of the Diploma Supplement and information about the educational system of Cyprus are also provided.
Arrangements for Academic Guidance
The Tutorial System
Another important feature of College life is the tutorial system, in which small groups of students discuss specific issues with a member of the faculty. Students are also given an opportunity for reading and private study, which is the essence of College education. In these small groups a student can develop as an individual, not merely as one of a class. The technique of learning for oneself is perhaps the most important thing to learn and experience at a College/ University.
The Personal Tutor System
Students are allocated personal tutors who are members of the academic staff. The tutors act in a personal advisory capacity for the duration of a programme or an academic year and provide counselling on option choices and career development.
Personal tutors may also provide guidance and assistance to students in need of support over personal problems. The allocation of students to tutors is announced at the beginning of the Fall semester. A revised allocation is announced at the beginning of the Spring semester to account for the allocation of the new students joining the College as well as the fact that some students may graduate in Fall and have to be removed from the lists.
Other arrangements
The students receive a handbook which contains essential information including details about the academic and administrative procedures, as well as a wide variety of other information about life at the College, support services, College and Student Union activities, facilities, etc.
New students attend orientation sessions during which they are provided with all the necessary information and are introduced to the College regulations, rules, facilities and library. They also have the opportunity during the tour provided to meet key staff and faculty.
Students meet with the academic/personal advisors every semester. The advisors provide students with information relating to their individual academic programmes, module and career options but also they act as personal advisors, guiding students on problems of more personal nature.
Each lecturer announces at the beginning of each semester the office hours he/she will be available for individual meetings with students.
The Erasmus office introduces students to the exchange programmes which are provided for the current academic year.
Students are represented in the various committees operating at the College and attend relevant meetings.
There is an appointed member of the faculty who acts as the Student Union Advisor and provides the students with guidance, support and other information.
Students have access to the Internet as well as the internal platform where they can find and access module information such as the module syllabus, module class notes, and module related announcements and other information.
Last, but not least, the College has an appointed Student Counsellor whose responsibility is to deal with issues of student concern such as learning difficulties, stress, personal and family problems, etc.
ECTS Institutional Co-ordinator
Mrs. Maria Constantinou
Tel. + 357 24 021555/ 24 021520
Fax: +357 24 628860
E Mail: m.constantinou@faculty.pacollege.ac.cy