News

Until the beginning of September, a design competition was open to find a building signage solution for the University of Tartu buildings. Of the two eligible entries submitted, the winning design was “Kõik algab sinisest” (“Everything begins with blue”) by Unt ja Tammik OÜ.

The renovation of the area in front of the university’s main building, which began in May, has now been completed.

Triin Laisk, Associate Professor of Genomics and Reproductive Genetics at the University of Tartu, has become the first person from the Baltics to be selected as one of eight finalists in the Scientific Achievement category of the Inspiring Women in Science competition organised by the journal Nature.

During the Peeter Tulviste memorial week held from 27 October to 2 November, a memorial conference takes place in the university assembly hall, and the exhibition “Bibliophile Peeter Tulviste” opens at the university library.

Last year, Elmo decided to challenge himself by joining the University of Tartu mentoring programme. His mentee was Grete Sakteos, a bachelor’s student in astrophysics.

University of Tartu semioticians Andreas Ventsel and Mari-Liis Madisson, along with Junior Research Fellow in Information Resilience Diana Poudel, have developed tools for enhancing critical digital literacy in cooperation with international partners. The practical materials are designed for use in higher education, schools, companies and organisations to support navigating the digital landscape and countering the spread of disinformation.

On 6 August, Rector Toomas Asser signed the University of Tartu alumni relations strategy for 2025–2035. We spoke with Head of Alumni Relations Kaisa Hansson about the role alumni play at the university and how she envisions the future of collaboration with them.

A recent overview published by the Estonian Research Council (ETAG) reveals that Estonia has performed exceptionally well in the European Union’s framework programme for research and innovation, Horizon Europe (2021–2027). Among Estonian institutions, the University of Tartu has been the most successful participant in the programme, receiving almost €90 million in funding.

On 11 September, following extensive construction work, the Praaga field station was reopened.

Annabel Agasild, a bachelor’s student in psychology at the University of Tartu, took part in the university's mentoring programme and shares her experience.

In June 2025, the University of Tartu Academic Sports Club conducted a survey on the physical activity habits of the university community.

As threats to academic freedom intensify worldwide, The Guild – including the University of Tartu as a member – urges the EU and national governments to take firm steps to safeguard academic freedom and strengthen Europe’s appeal to top researchers.

Aivo Renser, alumnus of the University of Tartu School of Economics and Business Administration, participated as a mentor in the mentoring programme in the 2024/2025 academic year.

On 12 September, the opening event of the Estonian-Ukrainian cooperation project “Enforcing the Ukrainian higher education reform with a focus on modernizing and implementing personnel policy” took place at Mariupol State University in Kyiv.

Are you an international bachelor’s or master’s student of the University of Tartu? If so, you are invited to join the International Student Ambassadors (ISA) programme.

Until 31 October, nominations can be submitted for the “Contribution to Estonian National Identity” award.

Kelli Lehto, Associate Professor of Neuropsychiatric Genomics at the University of Tartu, is leading a prestigious European Research Council (ERC) grant project that brings together genetics, psychology, and data science to investigate the causes of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults and enhance diagnostic methods.

All university staff and students are invited to nominate candidates who deserve to be awarded the university’s honorary decoration for their outstanding achievements.

All in all, there are 16,052 students at the university.

The mentoring programme that has been popular in the previous years will be held again this autumn semester.