CREATIVE FT: Call for Literary Contributions
Dear students of the University of Maribor, Faculty of Tourism,
On the occasion of Prešeren Day – the Slovenian Cultural Holiday (8 February) and World Poetry Day (21 March), we invite you to celebrate the rich literary creativity of Slovenia, Europe, and the world by selecting your favourite poems, novel excerpts, or your literary works.
Language holds the wealth of thoughts, which we will read, reflect upon, discuss, and use to broaden our horizons…
How to Participate?
Choose from the following categories:
Poems – Select and submit a poem by your favourite poet.
Novel Excerpts – Share a passage from a novel that inspires you.
My Literary Writing – Submit your original poetry, prose, or creative writing.
Submission Guidelines:
- Each contribution (regardless of category) should not exceed 3 pages.
- You may also send a short video of yourself reading your selected work or your own writing.
Deadline: 10 March 2025
Send your contributions to: jasna.potocnik1@um.si
Let’s celebrate literature, culture, and creativity together! We look forward to your inspiring submissions.
The University of Maribor Press has published the textbook Benchmarking – Comparative Analysis in Tourism, authored by Assist. Prof. Dr. Barbara Pavlakovič Farrell and Assist. Nadja Mlakar. This is the first textbook on the Slovenian market dedicated to comparative analysis within the specific field of tourism. The chapters and case studies are written in both Slovenian and English, enhancing accessibility and usability for a wider audience. Each chapter includes questions and worksheets that follow the theoretical content, facilitating better understanding and more effective learning of key concepts.
The publication is available for free on the University of Maribor Press website at: https://press.um.si/index.php/ump/catalog/book/943.
The textbook "Benchmarking – Comparative Analysis in Tourism" offers a detailed insight into the benchmarking process, which is used to evaluate and improve businesses, organizations, and tourist destinations. The authors, Dr. Barbara Pavlakovič Farrell, and Nadja Mlakar, first present the theoretical foundations of benchmarking, including definitions, types, and phases of the analysis. The second part of the textbook focuses on practical examples carried out by students at the Faculty of Tourism, allowing readers to understand how theoretical concepts are applied in the real world. It includes examples of benchmarking that address various tourist destinations, providing valuable insights into successful practices and strategies. The textbook is designed to serve as a learning tool for students and professionals in tourism while also promoting the use of benchmarking as a tool for enhancing tourism offerings and sustainable development. In this way, the textbook contributes to the understanding and implementation of benchmarking in the tourism industry.
We are pleased to announce that the deadline for submitting abstracts for the TEDU25 International Scientific Conference has been extended to February 20th, 2025. This extension provides additional time for researchers and professionals to finalize and submit their abstracts for consideration.
For detailed submission guidelines and further information, please visit the official EasyChair page. More details can also be found in the Call for Papers and on the TEDU25 website.
For any inquiries, feel free to contact us at conference.ft@um.si.
We look forward to your contributions!
TEDU25 Conference Organising Committee
The University of Maribor officially commenced the celebration of its 50th anniversary with a ceremony on Rector's Day. During this traditional event, 64 awards and recognitions were presented to individuals who have significantly contributed to the establishment and development of the University of Maribor through their exceptional work, achievements, and merits.
We are proud that among the award recipients are also staff members and a student from the Faculty of Tourism at the University of Maribor. Through their professional and research work, as well as their collaboration with the community, they play a crucial role in enhancing the recognition and development of both the faculty and the university as a whole. Their dedication, innovation, and expertise are key factors in fulfilling the mission of the faculty and the university within the broader academic sphere.
Staff member Janja Lupšina received the University of Maribor Recognition for Professional Work, awarded for outstanding successes, achievements, and contributions.
Associate Professor Dr. Maja Turnšek was awarded the University of Maribor Prize for Scientific Research, Artistic, and Educational Work, recognizing top-tier successes, achievements, and merits.
Assistant Professor Dr. Tanja Lešnik Štuhec received the University of Maribor Prize for Collaboration with the Economy and Knowledge Transfer, which honors exceptional accomplishments in industry collaboration and significant results in knowledge transfer.
Among students, this year's Rector's Award for the Best Academic Achievement among Students of the University of Maribor in Their Enrollment Generation, based on a nomination from the home faculty, was awarded to graduate Tarik Džinić, who was unfortunately unable to attend the ceremony.
Rector's Day is an opportunity to express gratitude to all those who contribute to the progress and growth of the university through their efforts and dedication. On this occasion, Rector Professor Dr. Zdravko Kačič emphasized the importance of sustainability as a central theme of the university’s activities:
"Our educational and research activities are focused on achieving sustainable goals, such as environmental protection, social inclusion, and economic resilience. As a university, we recognize our responsibility in shaping future generations of professionals who will use their knowledge and values to create a more just and sustainable society. We will continue with activities to meet our set goals by the end of the decade and ensure the full implementation of all planned projects to provide appropriate infrastructure for all members of the University of Maribor."
We sincerely congratulate all awardees and wish them continued success in the future!
January 21, 2025, Študentski kampus, Ljubljana (Pivovarniška ulica 6, Ljubljana)
The conference is part of the course “The Power of Digital Platforms in Tourism”, led by assoc. prof. Maja Turnšek, PhD, Faculty of Tourism, University of Maribor.
The 2nd year master’s students of the programme Tourism Destinations and Experiences are expected to select and invite guest lecturers who can provide insights to their practical experiences of digitalisation in tourism. Guest lecturers present their work and organisation, and the students moderate the questions and answers.
Preliminary programme
14:30 Introductory words, assoc. prof. Maja Turnšek, PhD, Faculty of Tourism, University of Maribor
15:00 Katarina Ceglar, Deputy Head, Tourism 4.0 Arctur
15:30 Hotel Lev
16.00 Matej Kalan and Jaka Vukovič, Co-founder, Forward d.o.o. and CEO and Co-founder, Forward d.o.o.
16:30 Boštjan Horjak, Chief Executive Officer & Chief Sustainability officer of Liberty International Adriatic DMC
17:00 Gregor Banič, Head of Marketing, Visit Ljubljana
17:30 Dejan Ristič , Tourism Infrastructure Consultant, Visit Ljubljana
18:00 Timotej Furek, Vision 360
18:30 Lia Pozvek, Director, Lok4cija
We would like to inform you that the student online system AIPS (https://aips.um.si/en/PrijavaEN.aspx) is operational again.
For all exams taking place from January 6, 2025, onwards, please register via AIPS (regardless of whether you have already submitted a physical application to the office)!
Additionally, we would like to inform you that the faculty will be closed until January 3, 2025, due to holidays and collective leave. We will meet again on Monday, January 6, 2025.
We wish you happy holidays!
Every journey begins with the first step. May 2025 lead you to inspiring beginnings and unforgettable destinations. Wishing you joyful holidays and a happy New Year!
The Faculty of Tourism, University of Maribor announces the International scientific conference "Transforming Tourism and Hospitality through Education" (TEDU25) in Brežice, Slovenia, on May 14–16, 2025.
The conference will host renowned keynote speakers:
- Prof. John Tribe (York St John University & University of Surrey, United Kingdom)
- Prof. Hazel Tucker (University of Otago, New Zealand)
- Prof. Adele Ladkin (Bournemouth University, United Kingdom)
PARTICIPATION POSSIBILITIES
Prospective authors from all disciplinary backgrounds are kindly encouraged to contribute to and help shape the conference by submitting their abstracts (up to 500 words) by January 31, 2025 via this form.
There is no participation fee; however, registration is mandatory (deadline: April 15). More information is available in the Call for Papers.
We would like to inform you that the exam dates for the 2024-25 academic year have been published on the Study-Exams subpage, or you can access them directly via the following link: EXAMS 2024-25 (English programmes).
The exam dates will also be entered into AIPS as soon as possible.
On October 23, 2024, in the evening hours, a large-scale cyber attack using ransomware was launched on the central IT infrastructure of the University of Maribor, resulting in the disruption of all services, including email, the online classroom environment, websites, digital identity services, academic, HR, and financial information systems, the use of MS Teams, OneDrive, and others.
In addition to the dedicated IT experts at RCUM and IT coordinators, the University of Maribor immediately received assistance from numerous external institutions with their specialists. A crucial piece of information for staff, students, and all other individuals is that all investigations and findings collected from various sources to date indicate that the cyber attack did not involve any breaches of (personal) data or their extraction. The attack merely rendered access to digital data unavailable. Until now, the University of Maribor has not received any information about data leakage or threats indicating that data has been stolen.
Using backup systems and other recovery procedures, the University of Maribor is gradually and cautiously restoring the operation of systems, such as wired and wireless networks, student email services, MS Teams, websites, other M365 services, HR systems, payroll processing systems, financial and accounting systems, the Moodle online classroom, and others. These services are already operational. Regarding other IT services, numbering approximately 300, that were available before the attack, we inform you that they will only be made available once they are adequately prepared and secured. Due to numerous factors, it is not possible to predict exact timelines.
With this notice, we aim to provide all stakeholders with detailed updates on the current findings and, most importantly, to emphasize that we can assert with high confidence that no personal data breaches occurred as a result of the cyber attack. The data stored on disk capacities was encrypted, rendering it unreadable and unusable, but it was not exported or stolen.
We will continue to provide regular updates on the progress of the comprehensive restoration of the University of Maribor’s IT systems. At the same time, we will establish new security standards to elevate the culture of using IT services to an even higher level.
Sincerely,
Rector Prof. Dr. Zdravko Kačič