The first generation of students has recently graduated from the postgraduate specialist study of creative management in market communications at the Agora School of Market Communications.
Fourteen out of 19 students enrolled in the program two years ago, passed all exams, and from the end of June, when they defend their thesis, they will be able to use the title dipl. spec. art., or graduated specialist in market communications. The first generation has an exceptionally high percentage of successful students, which Dean Savo Bogdanović is very proud of.
– We offered students something unusual. Creative management in market communications is a blend of professional thinking and creativity using ‘soft’ managerial tools and techniques, ICT, and software that embody new dimensions of sound, movement, time, and virtual space as a whole. However, what ICT and software cannot do, and what a creative director in market communications as a person can, relates to emotions and subjective interpretation of events, projects, campaigns, and ‘events’. Therefore, the postgraduate specialist study of creative management in market communications is largely a cultural activity, which, along with aesthetic and personal creative expression, becomes a kind of framework for sources of values, emotions, experiences, and play that we so need in the upcoming digital era – said Bogdanović.
Attractive for the Region Although most students continued their studies after their undergraduate studies at Agora, some decided to come to Agora from other faculties, as well as from other countries, for a program that is currently unique, both in terms of the curriculum and the professors who teach there.
– I graduated in design and then started researching studies online that would allow me to expand my knowledge beyond design. That’s how I came across Agora’s specialist study and after consulting friends, I decided to apply. I came with high expectations, which were ultimately fulfilled – said Mihaela Stojanova, who came to the study from Macedonia.
She admits that she initially struggled a bit with the language, but with the help of professors and colleagues, she managed to overcome that barrier. At first, she was helped by students from her year, and once she settled in, she realized she had not made a mistake in choosing the faculty.
– The professors are excellent, and I like that a lot is demonstrated through practical examples and not all classical learning from books. This faculty gives me a breadth that I cannot get just from studying design. Now I have also understood parts of management, marketing, and this expands my employment opportunities – Stojanova told us, whose goal is to become a creative director so she can apply that knowledge in practice.
Most from Practice Unlike her, Kristijan Ljubešić has been at Agora since the beginning of his studies. After completing three years, the logical continuation was to pursue a master’s degree. His thesis is based on his own experience as he is the owner of the company Bamboos, for which he got the idea during his studies.
– What I like most is that the professors are not like those at other faculties; they are available for conversation and do not just teach what is in the books. The advantage is that many of them have their own practice, so they show us through those examples how to develop and work. People from real life teach us how to work, and that is much better – believes Ljubešić, who had no problems balancing faculty with his private business since classes are on Thursday and Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings.
Among the students, there is a synergy of younger and older colleagues who have become friends and more than just student friends. Fabijan Jokić is one of the oldest and comes from a completely different profession. He is the owner of a construction company and used the crisis in business to expand his knowledge.
– Given that I am a civil engineer by profession, the crisis was an opportunity for me to learn something new so that I could apply it in my work. Agora’s study seemed like an excellent opportunity, and I have no regrets about it. My expectations have been fulfilled, and now I need to apply that in my business. Although I am older than my colleagues, they accepted me very well, and my recommendation to everyone is that regardless of age, they should decide to continue studying and thus supplement their knowledge – emphasized Jokić.
