New strategic plan defines the university’s role in a changing world

The University of Tartu’s committee for the strategic plan until 2035 is currently selecting the key topics the university should focus on in the next decade. At the joint meeting in June 2024, the senate and council set the target to select three to five areas in which the University of Tartu wants to make a development leap over the next ten years.

“The world around us is changing rapidly and significantly, and the changes have a considerable impact on the University of Tartu. The agreement reached by the council and senate to focus on a small number of areas for development shows that amid major changes, the university must identify the most important areas that require significant efforts. In this way, we will be more resilient to change, more innovative, and able to fulfil our role as a national university,” said Tõnu Esko, chairman of the strategic planning committee, Vice Rector for Development.

“It does not mean that issues left out of the new strategic plan are any less important. The university continues to pursue its statutory objectives regardless of whether or not they are included in the strategic plan,” Esko added.

Last autumn, university members had the opportunity to assess the bundles of trends likely to affect the university in the coming decade, formulated based on the trend analysis completed by the Centre for Applied Social Research. The trends were assessed by 713 staff members from academic and support units, and 68 students. In the autumn, the first version of the strategic plan with five possible areas for development was prepared based on the ideas gathering conducted in spring and the trends in society. After that, through the discussions held in the units, employees from 44 units gave feedback on the five areas for development. The vice rector for development is grateful to all staff and students who contributed their ideas in the autumn. “It is pleasant to see that the university’s future matters so much to staff and students,” said Esko.

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The strategic planning committee is currently working on topics from the university members’ proposals, such as academic succession, work environment and culture, geopolitical changes and the university’s internationalisation, sustainability, technological development, social impact and transdisciplinary cooperation. “These keywords reflect how the staff and students rated the most important trends influencing the university. The strategic planning committee is now considering various options to come up with reasoned proposals. When you do a little of everything, it can happen that you overlook the most important things,” Esko explained.

The University of Tartu council will discuss the state of the strategic plan at its session on 10 March. On 28 March, it will be presented to the senate. From March to May, the strategic planning committee and the Rector’s Office refine the areas for development and objectives. The University of Tartu senate will give their opinion of the strategic plan at the session on 30 May. The strategic plan will be presented to the university council for approval at the session on 16 June.