Profile
Dr Ernest Azzopardi graduated in Economics with honours from the University of Malta (UoM). He furthered his studies by following a postgraduate certificate programme in Education obtaining an overall distinction. He was subsequently awarded an Italian Foreign Affairs Ministry Scholarship to pursue a postgraduate diploma course in Italy in Economic Development at The International Institute of Economic Development. He proceeded to read for a Master of Science in Financial Economics at The University of London and a Master of Philosophy. He completed his formal education at The Robert Gordon University (RGU), Aberdeen. At RGU, he successfully completed the postgraduate certificate programme in Research Methods with distinction and earned his Doctorate by doing original research on international tourism competitiveness. He received a special mention for earning his doctorate with no revisions.
Dr Azzopardi has extensive experience in undergraduate and graduate teaching and research supervision in economics, management, tourism and the environment. He was formerly a senior lecturer at UoM and Area Coordinator at JC in Business and IT as well as Head of the Economics Department. His current research interests are in change management, tourism planning, international competitiveness and tourism education, as well as in growth economics. He is particularly interested in 'Keynesian' economics and its relevance to current economic thinking and policies. He has published articles in international academic journals, written and co-edited books, and presented several conference papers on subjects related to his research interests. He has reviewed several papers for top rated peer reviewed journals in tourism and is a member of the editorial board of Symposia Militensia and Religious Tourism. He has served as a member on several educational boards and has successfully organized international academic and professional conferences.
Dr Azzopardi is currently deputy chairman of the Lands Authority and Job Plus and a member of the board of governors of Air Malta. He was previously a board member of the MFSA and the Valletta Cultural Agency. He was also the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Institute of Tourism Studies, the Chairman of the Management Advisory Group and a Management Consultant and Economic Adviser to a number of institutions. He has occupied top management posts in research and public institutions and served as chairperson/member of boards of directors. He was instrumental in the setting up of The Water Services Corporation and The Institute for Water Technology where he was Director for many years. He has successfully worked on various assignments for SMEs, NGOs, Public entities and international agencies.
Dr Azzopardi has extensive experience in undergraduate and graduate teaching and research supervision in economics, management, tourism and the environment. He was formerly a senior lecturer at UoM and Area Coordinator at JC in Business and IT as well as Head of the Economics Department. His current research interests are in change management, tourism planning, international competitiveness and tourism education, as well as in growth economics. He is particularly interested in 'Keynesian' economics and its relevance to current economic thinking and policies. He has published articles in international academic journals, written and co-edited books, and presented several conference papers on subjects related to his research interests. He has reviewed several papers for top rated peer reviewed journals in tourism and is a member of the editorial board of Symposia Militensia and Religious Tourism. He has served as a member on several educational boards and has successfully organized international academic and professional conferences.
Dr Azzopardi is currently deputy chairman of the Lands Authority and Job Plus and a member of the board of governors of Air Malta. He was previously a board member of the MFSA and the Valletta Cultural Agency. He was also the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Institute of Tourism Studies, the Chairman of the Management Advisory Group and a Management Consultant and Economic Adviser to a number of institutions. He has occupied top management posts in research and public institutions and served as chairperson/member of boards of directors. He was instrumental in the setting up of The Water Services Corporation and The Institute for Water Technology where he was Director for many years. He has successfully worked on various assignments for SMEs, NGOs, Public entities and international agencies.