Rector Toomas Asser: education is the strongest safeguard of the independent existence of Estonia

Speech by Rector of the University of Tartu, Professor Toomas Asser at the ceremony marking the 106th anniversary of Estonia’s national university on 1 December 2025.

Dear new honorary doctors and doctors of the University of Tartu, dear guests and all university members,

History has shown that universities come into being when a nation or state is preparing for something significant: independence, expansion of influence, or even survival and rebirth. Education is commonly referred to as a soft power. In the history of Estonia, however, education has been the strongest safeguard of our independent existence, in which autonomous universities that uphold academic freedom have a crucial role.

The prerequisite for the creation of the Estonian state was an Estonian-speaking educated class. One of the missions of the Estonian-speaking University of Tartu, established 106 years ago during the Estonian war of independence, was to prepare “experts equipped with the specialised knowledge necessary for the work of the state and the nation”, as stated in the first University of Tartu Act. Because a nation that has its own educated class is capable of governing itself. On the threshold of the restoration of independence in Estonia, the University of Tartu rectors Jüri Kärner and Peeter Tulviste firmly set the university on a westward course to ensure Estonia’s integration into the democratic value space. They understood clearly that the University of Tartu must quickly re-establish itself as Estonia’s university, and undertook the difficult and, at times, thankless task of transforming the university.

Looking still further back in time, Harvard University was founded in 1636 to educate the learned clergy, who would become the future intellectual and political elite of the British colony. Four years earlier, in 1632, the King of Sweden established Academia Gustaviana in the land across the Baltic Sea to strengthen Sweden’s political and cultural presence in this region. Six centuries before that, in 1088, the University of Bologna was founded to secure, through the teaching of law, the independence of the city of Bologna from imperial and papal authority.

Figuratively speaking, territories are still being conquered through education today: states or universities open branches in foreign countries to shape the local values and future elites there. Recently, Times Higher Education wrote that Russia ranks third among the world’s largest exporters of education, with the highest number of degree-awarding institutions abroad after the United States and the United Kingdom. Hopefully, the united Western world will soon be able to increase its educational presence in a free Ukraine, dedicated to rebuilding its state.

Even based on these few reflections, it can be said that one of the key purposes of founding universities has always been, and still is, the strengthening and consolidation of a country’s political, cultural, or religious influence. It is, therefore, misleading to speak of education as soft power. On the contrary, education is the greatest, most far-reaching power.

It is for this reason that the European Commission has adopted a common strategy for universities, urging all member states to ensure that their universities receive adequate, diversified and long-term funding that supports the universities’ autonomy, excellence and societal role.

Thus, when we say that Estonia lacks a long-term plan for higher education, the government in fact has a clear task: first, to guarantee that the universities’ autonomy, academic freedom and stability are protected from political turbulence; secondly, to affirm that world-class higher education is the foundation of our national security and development; and thirdly, to define the resources secured for universities to achieve their goals. A month ago, at the university’s development conference, the minister of education and research gave examples of large countries where the funding for universities is under pressure. This, however, should not justify placing Estonian universities in the same situation. The extent to which a country supports its higher education is not an abstract societal decision but rather a political choice made by a specific government. Yet, while a decrease in state support in the United States or France will not immediately lead to a catastrophe, in Estonia, where there are only six public universities and just one classical university among them, the consequences of leaving universities to fend for themselves would be far-reaching. I repeat what I already said: Estonia’s national university was founded 106 years ago to ensure the survival of our small state.

It is deeply symbolic that at this ceremony, where we celebrate the founding of the Estonian-language university, the university confers new doctorates each year. This year’s conferment is exceptional, as our 142 new doctors are sitting alongside the university’s newly appointed honorary doctor Svante Pääbo, who defended his doctoral degree 40 years ago at Uppsala University and is now a Nobel laureate.

I have also asked Professor Pääbo to deliver the academic lecture today. What could be more inspiring for making choices for the future? And who knows – those who receive their doctoral diplomas today may reach the Nobel prize in much less time! Or take today’s recipient of the “Contribution to Estonian National Identity” award – about whom you will soon hear more – who has been, for nearly 70 years already, a respected teacher and researcher, a tireless advocate of research-based thinking and a balancing voice in public debates. The person has filled in gaps where the limits of common knowledge or even ideological pressures tend to lead society astray. Preventing such misdirection may also be your mission, dear doctors.

You, in turn, are an inspiration to the next generation. A week ago, I attended the anniversary conference of the University of Tartu Youth Academy, where discussions focused on supporting talent. The interest in developing one’s talent, sparked by role models, is undoubtedly important, even crucial. There are probably many among you who had their first encounters with the university and research at our Youth Academy. I encourage you to share the stories of your academic journeys publicly: what helped you, what hindered you, and what you felt was lacking during your university studies, and the following path of your intellectual growth. When implementing its new ten-year strategic plan, the university will be able to learn a lot from your stories how to truly support the development of the gifted and talented, thereby securing both our academic succession and the perceived high value of the doctoral degree in society.

I very much hope that, as a result of the doctoral reform, we will be able to confer an increasing number of doctoral degrees each year on 1 December. Every person who completes the journey of doctoral studies adds stability and depth of thought to Estonian society. A doctoral degree does not merely attest to specialised knowledge in a narrow field; it shows a person’s ability to identify problems, seek solutions and – perhaps most importantly today – resolve these problems.

We are well aware of the challenges posed by our ageing population and the resulting labour shortage that is already evident. Soon enough, we will all feel its impact. With this in mind, I would like to look a few years ahead, to a time when a larger generation of secondary school graduates will seek admission to universities. This is an opportunity that no smart country should allow to go to waste. Our responsibility is to provide future-proofing for both this generation and the entire society, which needs these young people as professionals in their fields, whether in healthcare, schools, engineering or other sectors facing severe labour shortages. We must offer young people the chance to build a strong foundation through higher education, so that they can continue learning and increasing their value throughout their lives, rather than being forced into constant retraining because their initial footing was weak.