Students’ Philosophy Society’s statement on new Rector

Prior to the University Students’ Council consultation on the new Rectorate next Monday, the Students’ Philosophy Society would like to contribute to the ongoing debate on the future of the rectorate of the University of Malta by expressing in clear terms its position to all interested parties and the general public.

The Society believes that a new Rector should press forward in the development of various aspects of the University initiated by the previous Rectorate, but they should also pay special attention to the Humanities, which it feels are being increasingly neglected in favour of disciplines considered to be more in line with the economic needs of the country. This neglect has resulted in students of the human disciplines, amongst which one finds students of philosophy, being put last on the agenda of the University and the Government, with various influential individuals propagating the shallow view that choosing to study the Humanities is nothing but the pursuit of a pipe-dream that will not result in gainful employment.

Whilst the Society accepts the fact that attention must be paid to the economic requirements of Maltese society, and not just to its cultural and social environment, it believes that it is a false and potentially dangerous economy to prioritise economic growth over social and cultural growth. It has been our firm belief that whilst the sciences let us live, the humanities provide us with a reason to live. Such a reason cannot be created economically, but only through the unappreciated endeavours of artists, historians, sociologists, philosophers and other students of the human disciplines.

In thanking Prof. Camilleri for his distinguished service as Rector, we believe that his successor should act to remedy the imbalance between Humanities and Sciences at the University of Malta by giving academic research in the Humanities its due priority, by providing greater opportunities for students of the Humanities to employ their skills, and by steering clear of the bureaucratisation of higher education that is plaguing institutions across Europe.