Lecturer Patrick DeBattista on fulfilling his ‘rock star’ dream by teaching and training others

Lecturer Patrick DeBattista on Sunday highlighted that despite having to abandon his dream of becoming a true rock star, he is still feeling that same adrenaline by teaching and training others on subjects related to finance.

Back when he was still 14, Mr DeBattista was a “rock addict with a steady but mediocre repertoire of guitar riffs”. This made it clear to him that he wished to become a rock star when he grew up.

However, as is the case for many people, life does not always go as planned or dreamt.

“Unfortunately, school got in the way, bands fell apart, and I slowly tucked away my guitar for a laptop, calculator, and Excel sheet. Various corporate jobs followed. I learnt and grew as a professional in different fields,” he said.

Despite the various fields he has worked in over the years, he remarked that “nothing could replace the feeling of playing a guitar with a band of brothers and performing to a live audience”.

This was the case until he started teaching, a feeling which to him, “comes very close” to performing on stage.

Mr DeBattista has been teaching in one way or another since the age of 15, and he expressed that there is something about “sharing knowledge with like-minded individuals” that fills him with “hope and satisfaction”.

“In class or in training, I am in my element. I am a rock star in my own little way,” he continued.

With the start of the new scholastic year, he is teaching another master’s degree course, and he hopes to “continue creating heavy metal financial content for many years to come”.

Mr DeBattista has worked as a Lecturer at Central Mediterranean Business School (CMBS) for more than five years, providing lectures on financial management and management accounting and finance, in part fulfilment of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) qualification. Additionally, he is a Visiting Lecturer at University of Malta, teaching valuations as part of an investment banking module for Bachelor of Commerce (Banking and Finance) students.

His experience includes various management positions at a number of corporate services firms. Mr DeBattista holds an Executive Master’s in Financial Analysis from Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, as well as a Bachelor of Accountancy (Hons) in Accountancy and Finance, among other qualifications.