Business student completes research project funded through Sheffield’s SURE scheme 2014

Roena Agolli, third level student at our Business Administration and Economics Department, successfully completed her research project entitled ‘The Impact of Microcredit on Woman-Owned MSEs: Evidence from Albania’, a project that received research fund through the University of Sheffield’s SURE (Sheffield Undergraduate Research Experience) 2014. Her study is going to be submitted in ICEIRD 2015.

In her study Roena examined the impact of microcredit on women-owned micro and small enterprises, using a set of data from enterprises in Albania. The findings of the study show microfinance intervention has statistically significant difference for enterprise sales revenue, net profits and liabilities and statistically insignificant difference for number of employees. Her project was supervised by Dr. Anastasios Karamanos.

Roena comments: “My experience with SURE was amazing and gave me the great opportunity to expand my research capabilities. I was fortunate enough to work directly with my research supervisor Dr. Anastasios Karamanos, who has been supportive and generous with his wealth of knowledge, dynamic guidance and time. His mentorship and involvement has motivated me to remain focused on enhancing my performance goals and has been of great importance in offering a well round experience consistent with my long-term career ambitions. I was offered the possibility to take the project a step forward and professionally look at myself in a different way and in a type of environment, which I would like to explore and suit myself even more in the future.”

The scholarship came through ‘SURE - Sheffield Undergraduate Research Experience’, a scheme of the University of Sheffield which invites undergraduate students of the university to conduct research in subject areas of their interest and offers scholarships to the best research proposals submitted.

Roena is one of the many students from the International Faculty who succeeded to receive a SURE scholarship from the University of Sheffield.

The Impact of Microcredit on Woman-Owned MSEs: Evidence from Albania