Sarajevo, 14 April 2025
We are proud to announce that International Burch University has been awarded the Science Prize in the category of Social and Natural Sciences at the 36th Sarajevo International Book Fair, held under the theme “Read Me – Book, Memory, Media”.
The award-winning publication, "Advancing Higher Education Marketing through Social Media and Machine Learning: Comprehensive Strategies and Case Studies", is a pioneering interdisciplinary work authored by Prof. Dr. Mersid Poturak, Assist. Prof. Dr. Engin Obucic, and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Dino Keco, with design by Alen Camdzic. The book offers a ground-breaking contribution to the field of higher education marketing by merging artificial intelligence methodologies with social media analytics.
Through the analysis of over 1,200 Facebook posts from 24 leading universities—including Harvard, Oxford, and the Australian National University—the authors applied machine learning algorithms (Random Forest, SMO, Naive Bayes, and J48) to decode the relationship between visual content and student engagement. The study provides actionable insights for enhancing digital strategies on platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram, and includes 24 case studies of leading higher education institutions.
The award ceremony took place on "Monday, 14 April 2025", at "Bosanska kuća", in the presence of distinguished guests, authors, and members of the literary and academic community. The decision was made by a jury led by Lejla Alimanovic (President), with members Dragana Bogdanovic and Asmir Kujovic.
This recognition reflects International Burch University’s commitment to cutting-edge research, innovation in digital communication, and the promotion of science through interdisciplinary collaboration. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the authors for this outstanding achievement.
Photography and coverage of the fair were provided by the Graphic Design and Multimedia student Alma Hindija.