News

At the international innovation competition in Shanghai, which had more than 700 participants from 40 countries, UT doctoral students won first place with their idea about creating an innovative environmental indicator based on the analysis of the chemical composition of honey and which also promoted keeping bees in urban environments.

The Harry and Reba Huge Foundation, which has supported the mobility of UT students and lecturers with Nebraska Wesleyan University and the College of Charleston for the past ten years, has in the last two years also contributed to promoting entrepreneurship among students. Recently, the foundation and university signed an agreement according to which the foundation will support the development and implementation of research-based business ideas of entrepreneurial students with 50,000 dollars to the Vega Fund.

The portrait of Rector Georges Frédéric Parrot by Gerhard von Kügelgen has arrived back at UT Art Museum after long travels. In 1803 Gerhard von Kügelgen painted the charismatic UT Rector and Professor of Physics Georges Frédéric Parrot who was also a close acquaintance of the artist. The portrait completed in 1803 and the replica made later by the artist went missing at the beginning of the 20th century.

Because human activities and their impacts do not stop at national sea borders, there is a need for coordination among national Maritime Spatial Plans and planning processes. With this in mind relevant Maritime Spatial Planning authorities will cooperate over the coming three years within the two sister projects “NorthSEE” and “Baltic LINes”, funded through Interreg. University of Tartu Estonian Marine Institute is one of the partner of the projects.

President Toomas Hendrik Ilves and Ieva Ilves visited IT companies that operate in Tartu and met at Garage48 HUB Tartu with representatives of the community of local start-up companies to discuss recent developments in the business environment of Tartu.

The “Research in Estonia” initiative will take part at the Europe’s largest interdisciplinary science meeting „EuroScience Open Forum“ July 23-27, 2016 in Manchester, United Kingdom. We showcase some of the highlights of Estonian research in the exhibition area through the theme of health technologies and spread information about research opportunities in Estonia. Researchers in Estonia have reached the forefront in several fields on a global level.

The 5th Martens Summer School of International Law, organized by the School of Law of the University of Tartu, will take place in Pärnu on 25-29 July 2016. This year, 30 students from Estonia, Belarus, Czechia, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Russia, Spain and Sweden will attend the Martens Summer School on International Law.

The Estonian Bar Association and the University of Tartu IT Law Programme announced the competition in order to develop solutions that would make it easier for specialists, and for people not practising law, to find answers to questions regarding legal matters.

On 15 July 2016, the lists of students admitted to the University of Tartu’s 2,342 bachelor’s and 1,417 master’s study places were published. 425 of Estonia’s best high school graduates, students who finished with a gold or silver medal, are on the lists, incl. 350 students who finished high school this year. By now the applicants have received the first results regarding the UT admission. All those who exceeded the admission threshold were guaranteed a study place.

The University of Tartu Rector invites all golfers who appreciate the beauty of the game to the traditional University of Tartu Rector’s Cup Golf Tournament, which takes place on 21 August 2016 at the Otepää Golf Center between the hills of South-Estonia. Players compete in individual class and, for the first time, also in the faculty competition. It is an open tournament and in addition to alumni, students and lecturers all competitive golf enthusiasts are welcome.

Nearly 350 people will be participating in the 2016 ECPR Graduate Student Conference, hosted by the UT Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies on 10-13 July. The ECPR Graduate Student Conference is a biennial conference which gives graduate students an opportunity to organize and take part in an international academic event designed to cater specifically for their needs, e.g. giving the experience of acting as section heads, panel chairs and discussants.

An international Cyber Security Summer School for doctoral students and young researchers titled “Digital Forensics – Technology and Law” is held in Tallinn from July 3-8, and brings together leading cyber security and IT law practitioners to Estonia from all over the world.

UT students and their programmed robots team Philosopher are in Germany at the major international event RoboCup, where they are aiming high in robot football.

The Brexit situation has caused plenty of dismay in scientific communities. Researchers are worried whether and how it will be possible to participate in international research projects, particularly those initiated with EU Structural Funds support, or cooperation with foreign researchers in general. ERR Novaator asked the University of Tartu Rector Volli Kalm about the possible impact of the UK’s exit from the European Union on international research cooperation and academic mobility. Volli Kalm:

The University of Tartu International Summer University programme brings participants from Europe and the USA to study in Estonia. This time learners also include participants from various Asian countries—the Philippines, China, India, Iran, Japan and South-Korea. Popular courses address Lotman’s semiotics of culture and analyse the current political situation.

The University of Tartu signed the Prague and the Poitiers declarations that both emphasize the importance of education and the role of academia in the current world as the haven for democratic values. The Prague Declaration was signed by 76 universities belonging to Coimbra Group on 13 May 2016 at a conference held for the celebration of the 700th anniversary of the birth of King of Bohemia and Roman Emperor Charles IV in the historical building of Charles University.

It is only a matter of time before the winners of the UT business and project idea competition Kaleidoskoop, the creators of the website Konku for rental ads without estate agents fee, will target the US market. The students, who participated in the international programme Network Globally, Act Locally, stood out in the US and won second place and 2,000 USD to implement their idea.

Academia Europaea, the European Academy of Humanities, Letters and Sciences, elected UT Professor of Literary Theory Marina Grishakova, Professor of Modern Estonian Language Helle Metslang and Professor of Comparative Literature Jüri Talvet members of the Academy of Europe. It is recognition of their international research work and continuous contribution to European research.

The President and Board of Trustees of the Academia Europaea elected Jüri Allik, Professor of Experimental Psychology of the University of Tartu, Academician to membership of the Academia Europea in recognition of his international scholarship and sustained contribution to European research.

Until 30 June, admission applications can be submitted to the University of Tartu’s 53 Estonian-taught bachelor’s and 54 master’s programmes, including seven new programmes. In the coming academic year, UT will admit 2,342 bachelor’s and 1,417 master’s students.