IMA® (Institute of Management Accountants) recently established new strategic partnerships with several prominent academic institutions in Lithuania and Poland.
 
Vilnius Tech

IMA signed a cooperation agreement with Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (Vilnius Tech), a leading higher education institution located in Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital. 

Established in 1956, Vilnius Tech is one of the largest research universities in Lithuania, with a focus on technologies, engineering, and a strong emphasis on university-business cooperation. Enrolling more than 9,400 students, Vilnius Tech belongs to the global Top 250 universities in business and management as well as Top 250 in economics and econometrics, according to the QS World University Rankings by subject. The school offers three programs: undergraduate (BSc), graduate (MSc), and post-graduate (PhD) studies. More than 35% of the school’s study programs portfolio is provided in English, which makes Vilnius Tech a strong player in the arena of international education. 
 
Alain Mulder, senior director, IMA Europe operations, said, “We are pleased to start IMA’s partnership with Vilnius Tech. We recognize the importance of continuing to expand the CMA program in Lithuania, and we’re excited for Vilnius Tech’s students to benefit from the partnership and succeed as future CMAs. Both IMA and Vilnius Tech are committed to promoting higher education and professional development in finance and accounting, and to promoting the importance of qualified, creative professionals.”
 
“We highly value the opportunity offered by IMA to our students. Certified professional courses and the competences acquired will become an excellent catalyst towards faster and more ambitious international careers for our Vilnius Tech students in the global world of financial services,” said Vilnius Tech’s Vice-Rector for Strategic Partnership Asta Radzevi?ien?. 
 
VIKO

In addition, IMA began a partnership with University of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Economics in Vilnius (VIKO). Established in 2000, VIKO is currently one of the largest professional higher education institutions in Lithuania, meeting the expectations not only of the Vilnius region, but also of the entirety of Lithuanian entrants. The Faculty of Economics provides higher education college studies focused on practical activities. It offers five study programs: business economics, accounting, investment and insurance, banking, and finance. 
 
Noted Alain Mulder, senior director, IMA Europe operations at IMA, “We’re so pleased to form this new partnership with VIKO, and we look forward to expanding the CMA program in Lithuania. We know that VIKO’s students will benefit from this new partnership and will find the CMA beneficial for their future careers.”
 
ISM University
 
IMA also signed a partnership agreement with ISM University of Management and Economics, one of the top-ranked business universities in the Baltics, founded by BI Norwegian Business School. Its name has always been closely associated with quality, international experience, prestige, leadership, and constant progress. 
 
Alain Mulder, senior director, IMA Europe operations, noted, “We are proud to cooperate with ISM, which is a modern Lithuanian university that quickly reacts to new trends in the market and applies the most novel teaching methodologies. ISM academic faculty has studied in the best ranked universities in the world, such as Oxford, Harvard, NYU, and others. We look forward to helping students at ISM become CMA-certified.”
 
University of Economics in Katowice

Finally, IMA signed a cooperation agreement with University of Economics in Katowice, which was founded in 1937 and is the largest and oldest business school in the region, ranked as one of the top universities in Poland. Each year, approximately 8,000 Polish and international students pursue the university‘s degree programs at the bachelor, master, doctoral, and post-diploma levels. The mission of the University of Economics in Katowice is to provide a modern study environment and high-quality research in selected disciplines, with an academic community that creates and disseminates knowledge and new ideas, and that is open to expert international cooperation. 

Dr. Hab. Andrzej Piosik, prof. UE, Dean of Faculty of Finance, University of Economics in Katowice, Poland, said, “The cooperation between the University of Economics in Katowice and IMA gives our students the opportunity to develop a professional path while studying at our university. They can also benefit from IMA's modern teaching approach in this way. Students have shown great interest in participating in the IMA program. Cooperation with IMA also gives researchers the opportunity to develop research in the field of management accounting.”