This is not just any university graduating class. These are the pioneers who enrolled in Macedonia 's bold experiment in higher education—a private, multi-national, multi-lingual university. In this small country, ethnic Albanians and ethnic Macedonians seldom share classrooms, but at SEEU, it's standard practice.

How it all came about is a story of vision, efficiency, donor collaboration and the refusal to accept failure.

Serious discussions about a new university in the Republic of Macedonia were held in the spring of 2000. Detailed planning began in late 2000. Building commenced in March 2001 and SEEU opened six months later with about 900 students. By October 2002 the number of students had increased to 2250, and by October 2003 the number of students increased to 3700. Currently there are 5200 enrolled students at SEEU.

The start-up phase of SEEU's development has been made possible through initial donations of some €36m from several donors. USAID is the largest donor having contributed some $20 million to date. Currently, USAID funds staff training and upgrading, improving instructors English language capacity and use of technology in the classroom and developing cross-cutting programs that strengthen and reinforce individual faculty programs.

The University occupies purpose-built accommodation, including two large lecture halls, nearly 50 teaching rooms, staff offices, two state-of-the-art computer centers, a language center, a business development center, a career center, a modern library, and residential accommodation for 450 students. The University's IT system is connected to the Internet by satellite uplink providing opportunities for video-conferencing and high-speed data transfer. Distance learning from Indiana University is common and Maastricht will begin a joint MBA degree program in September 2005.