FACULTY OF SERBIAN STUDIES BEFORE THE SENATE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NIŠ: Decision on teaching despite dispute over operating license!

The Faculty of Serbian Studies*** was established by a decision of the Government of Serbia in November 2025, following the separation of the Departments of History, Serbian Studies, and Russian Language and Literature from the Faculty of Philosophy in Niš.***

According to the proposal that will be presented to members of the Senate, the University Statute should be amended so that the Faculty of Serbian Studies of the University of Niš is also listed among the higher education units with the status of a legal entity.

The proposal was previously considered by the University’s Committee for Statutory Affairs, chaired by Vice-Rector and former Rector Dragan Antić. The committee gave a positive opinion and assessed that the proposed amendment to the Statute was in accordance with the Law on Higher Education and the Government’s decision to establish the faculty.

However, the issue of the institution’s legal status remains disputed.

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Administrative Court postpones enforcement of Education Ministry decision

The Faculty of Serbian Studies currently does not have an operating license after the Administrative Court postponed the enforcement of the Education Ministry’s decision revoking the operating licenses for the History, Serbian Studies, and Russian Language and Literature programs at the Faculty of Philosophy.

At the same time, the Education Ministry ordered the University of Niš to take steps to implement the Government’s decision to establish the new faculty.

According to the documentation, the Republic Education Inspectorate requested that the University act in accordance with the Government’s decision and inform the Ministry about the steps it had taken.

Following the Senate’s decision, the proposed amendment to the Statute should also be forwarded to the University Council.

The establishment of the Faculty of Serbian Studies was initiated in the fall of 2025. At the time, the City of Niš proposed to the Government of Serbia that a new higher education institution be established by separating three departments from the Faculty of Philosophy – History, Serbian Studies, and Russian Language and Literature.

The Government adopted the decision to establish the faculty on November 6, 2025, after which it was published in the Official Gazette.

In March 2026, the Faculty of Serbian Studies received initial accreditation and an operating license from the National Entity for Accreditation and Quality Assurance in Higher Education and the Education Ministry. However, following the Ministry’s decision in April and the subsequent decision of the Administrative Court, the institution’s legal status became disputed once again.

At the same time, protests were held at the Faculty of Philosophy, while its Teaching and Scientific Council voted against a compromise with the new faculty.

Dispute also affects students

Changes concerning the three departments have direct consequences for students as well. The Government of Serbia decided that the state-funded enrollment quotas previously allocated to the Faculty of Philosophy would not apply to the aforementioned fields of study.

The Faculty of Philosophy Council subsequently decided that students in those departments would be exempt from paying tuition fees, while additional Government decisions also affected the possibility of enrolling in master’s and doctoral programs in History, Serbian Studies, and Russian Language and Literature at the expense of the state budget.

Despite its problems with its operating license, the Faculty of Serbian Studies also appeared on the Education Ministry’s list concerning scholarships for students.

If Senate members approve the proposal on Monday, the Faculty of Serbian Studies will be added to the Statute as the University of Niš’s new, 15th member institution, after which the decision should be forwarded to the University Council.