Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 11:55, 27 September 2013

Tallinn University (TU) (Template:Lang-et) is the third-largest institution of higher education in Estonia. It is in Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia. Despite the similar names, Tallinn University and Tallinn University of Technology are separate institutions.

History and ideology

Tallinn University was established on 18 March 2005 as the result of a merger of several universities (among which the Tallinn Pedagogical University was the biggest) and research institutes in Tallinn as well as the Estonian Academic Library. Having merged with such well-established institutes as the International Institute of Social Sciences and the Estonian Institute of Humanities, its main strengths lie in the fields of humanities and social sciences, but it also has a strong and constantly growing component of natural and exact sciences, as well as a long tradition of teacher training and educational research.

The university consists of 19 academic institutes and 5 colleges. It has around 10,000 students as well as close to 500 faculty members and research fellows — on the whole being the fastest-growing university in the country. In 2010, over 10,000 applications were submitted by student candidates; there were over 30 applicants per state-funded place in the most popular programmes.

The university has committed itself to the strategic goal of becoming an international research university with a strong social conscience and a friendly, flexible and collegial environment for learning and personal growth, where considerable academic freedoms guaranteed to the students and the faculty are balanced by strict quality requirements.

One of the main aims of the university is large-scale internationalisation. With its academic degree programmes and a number of shorter programmes and courses offered in the English language, it is about to become the most international university in the Baltic area. Many academic positions are announced for international application and the university is prepared to host international visiting scholars on their sabbatical leaves or by other agreements.

Tallinn University currently maintains over 30 inter-university agreements with universities in Europe, U.S., Japan, China, Russia, and several other countries as well over 400 Erasmus exchange agreements with universities from all over the European Union. The university also organises summer and winter schools (Tallinn Summer School, Tallinn Winter School) and other short-term courses for foreigners.

R&D activities and knowledge transfer

The main objectives of R&D activities are efficiency and a high international standard. To achieve these the university will:

• Increase the proportion of researchers to at least 30 percent of academic personnel;
• Concentrate research while specifying the priority directions of study mainly through intensifying cooperation between the faculties of the university, but also with other research and development establishments;
• Develop centres of competence;
• Introduce systems for motivating lecturers and researchers and for international publication of results;
• Support application of research results and applied studies;
• Orient itself towards increasing the role of international joint projects (mainly research and development programmes of the European Union) and other foreign funding of research;
• Improve the conditions of research work (providing researchers and lecturers with the time, facilities, equipment, literature, study abroad, information technology, etc. necessary for research);
• Increase the role of faculties in coordinating research work within the faculties and respectively the responsibility of the faculties for the quality of the research; create favourable conditions for developing perspective fields of research;
• Take active part in initiating, developing and carrying out national and regional projects;
• Develop cooperation with other research libraries of Estonia with the aim of meeting the research and training needs of academic personnel and students to a maximum extent;
• Mediate the results of research to the general public; develop a complex system of research and training marketing.R&D Department

Knowledge transfer and implementation of research results for society needs development of services, working processes and products of organisations and institutions. Basic forms of knowledge transfer are:

• Research and development projects,
• Knowledge services,
• Sale of definitive work,
• Industrial property,
• Spin-off enterprises.

Knowledge services:

• Providing a service outside the university
• Providing a service based on university R&D and educational activities;
• Services offered by university members or contract partners.

The university has thus made its logical contribution to the introduction of the national R&D strategy 2002-2006 “Knowledge-based Estonia”: Knowledge Transfer Centre and Knowledge Transfer Area.

Structure

Academic institutes

• Estonian Institute of Humanities: Director Hannes Palang
• Institute of Communication Studies: Director Kaja Tampere
• Institute of Ecology: Director Mihkel Kangur
• Institute of Educational Sciences: Director Rain Mikser
• Institute of Estonian Demography
• Institute of Estonian Language and Culture: Director Reili Argus
• Institute of Fine Arts: Director Orest Kormašov
• Institute of Germanic-Romance Languages and Cultures: Director Suliko Liiv
• Institute of Health Sciences and Sports: Director Kristjan Port
• Institute of History: Director Erki Russow
• Institute of Informatics: Director Peeter Normak
• Institute of Information Studies: Director Tiiu Reimo
• Institute of International and Social Studies: Director Airi-Alina Allaste
• Institute of Mathematics and Natural Sciences: Director Ruth Shimmo
• Institute of Political Science and Governance: Director Anu Toots, caretaker
• Institute of Psychology: Director Aleksander Pulver
• Institute of Slavonic Languages and Cultures: Director Aurika Meimre
• Institute of Social Work: Director Lauri Leppik

Colleges

• Baltic Film and Media School: Director Katrin Saks
• Catherine's College: Director Dimitri Mironov
• Haapsalu College: Acting Director Janno Kriiska
• Law School: President Rein Müllerson
• Rakvere College: Director Kalle Karron

International Master programs

• Anthropology
• Communication Management
• Comparative Literature and Cultural Semiotics
• Crossmedia Production
• Digital Library Learning
• European Studies: Europeanization of Governance and Politics
• Film Arts
• Interactive Media and Knowledge Environments (IMKE)
• International Relations

International Bachelor programs

• Audiovisual Media
• Law
• Law with Management
• Liberal Arts in Humanities/Social Sciences

Short courses

• Tallinn Summer School
• Tallinn Winter School

External links

• Official website

Template:Baltic universities

v t e Tallinn landmarks
Buildings and structures	Toompea Castle Town Hall Old Thomas Kiek in de Kök St Mary's Cathedral St. Olaf's church St. Nicholas Church Church of the Holy Ghost Alexander Nevsky Cathedral Saint Catherine's Monastery Town Hall Pharmacy Great Guild Pikk Hermann tower Knighthood House Stenbock House Kadriorg Palace Presidential Palace Pirita Monastery Glehn Castle (Tallinn Observatory) Maarjamäe Manor Maarjamäe Memorial TV Tower Linnahall Patarei Sea Fortress-Prison Independence War Victory Column Bronze Soldier Charles Leroux Monument Russalka Memorial Raekoja plats Freedom Square Walls of Tallinn House of the Brotherhood of Blackheads Tallinn Synagogue
Precincts	Historic Centre (Toompea Hill) Kadriorg Kalamaja
Nature and parks	Tallinn Zoo Tallinn Botanic Garden Lake Ülemiste Lake Harku Pirita River Aegna island Kadriorg Park Danish King's Garden Kanuti Garden Kuberneri Garden Komandandi Garden Toompark Hirvepark Harjumägi Lindamägi Tammsaare Park Police Garden Löwenruh Park Glehn Park Jüriöö Park Pae Park Lillepi Park Kakumäe Coastal Park Kopli cemetery Kalamaja cemetery Metsakalmistu
Beaches	Pirita Beach Stroomi Beach Kakumäe Beach Harku Beach Pikakari Beach
Culture	Museums and galleries Kumu (Art Museum of Estonia main branch) Mikkel Museum Estonian Open Air Museum (Kolu kõrts) Estonian Maritime Museum (Seaplane Harbour) Estonian Firefighting Museum Estonian History Museum Estonian Museum of Natural History Estonian Health Museum Estonian Theatre and Music Museum Museum of Estonian Architecture Museum of Occupations Theatres Estonia Theatre Estonian Drama Theatre Theatre NO99 Russian Theatre Estonian Puppet Theatre Tallinn City Theatre Von Krahl Theatre Other National Library of Estonia Song Festival Grounds Culture Factory Polymer
Science and education	Tallinn University Tallinn University of Technology Estonian Academy of Arts Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre Estonian Academy of Security Sciences Estonian Maritime Academy Tallinn University of Applied Sciences Estonian Business School Estonian Academy of Sciences
Sports	Pirita Yachting Centre A. Le Coq Arena Kadriorg Stadium Kalevi Keskstaadion Unibet Arena Kalev Sports Hall Tondiraba Ice Hall Pirita Velodrome Mustamäe Ski Jumping Hill Tallinn Hippodrome Pirita-Kose-Kloostrimetsa Circuit
Transportation	Port of Tallinn Old City Harbour Paljassaare Harbour Bekker Port Tallinn Airport Tallinn Baltic Station Tallinn bus station Tallinna Linnatranspordi AS
Events	Estonian Song Festival Estonian Dance Festival Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival Tallinn Old Town Days Tallinn Marathon Tallinn Music Week Tallinn Christmas Market Õllesummer Tallinn Legends

• Universities in Estonia
• Educational institutions established in 2005
• Education in Tallinn
• 2005 establishments in Estonia
• Tallinn University