More than 5,500 new students are beginning their journey at the University of Malta as KSU Freshers’ Week officially gets underway for another year.The new cohort includes over 2,500 undergraduate students and more than 2,200 postgraduate students, alongside around 350 Erasmus+ students and another 500 visiting students following micro-credentials.Meanwhile, more than 1,100 new students are joining Junior College, bringing its overall student population to over 2,100.The academic year officially kicked off with an opening ceremony at Sir Temi Zammit Hall, where newly appointed Rector Prof. Frank Bezzina delivered his first welcome address to incoming students.Under the theme “Building Tomorrow through Knowledge, Purpose and Community,” Bezzina encouraged students to leave university not only with greater knowledge, but also with curiosity, confidence and a sense of responsibility.KSU President Nick Muscat also welcomed students, describing university as “one of the most important chapters of our lives”.“University should be somewhere your ideas are challenged, teach you how to think for yourself and get involved in causes that matter,” he said.Freshers’ Week will now take over the Msida campus, with dozens of stands, student organisations, games, giveaways and activities welcoming students throughout the week.This year, the University of Malta has more than 13,000 students studying across 931 courses, including approximately 2,000 international students representing 130 countries.Several new courses are also being introduced, including a BSc in Computational Statistics and Artificial Intelligence.Lectures for new students officially begin on Thursday 8th October.Starting your University of Malta journey this week?•