Minutes of the Rector’s Meeting

International activities 

The following events were recently held at St Petersburg University. 

Delegation from Peking University visits St Petersburg University 

On 3 April, Vladimir Starostenko, Vice-Rector for Digital Transformation and Information Security at St Petersburg University, met with a delegation from Peking University (the People’s Republic of China) led by Comrade Fang Fang, Vice President for International Relations of Peking University. During the negotiations, they discussed the prospects of intensifying cooperation between the universities, the issues of creating joint online courses in Chinese for students, and providing the representatives of Peking University with access to St Petersburg University’s online courses in Russian. 

Opening of a representative office of St Petersburg University in the Republic Moldova

On 4 April, the project "Representative Office of St Petersburg University" was launched on the basis of Slavonic University of the Republic of Moldova. On the occasion of the opening of the Representative Office, Sergei Ushchipovskiy, Associate Professor in the Department of History of Journalism at St Petersburg University, delivered the lecture "Moldova-Russia communicative relations: historical aspect". The lecture was attended by more than 100 people. 

Strengthening of cooperation with Cambodian government agencies and organisations

From 4 to 6 April, representatives of St Petersburg University visited the Kingdom of Cambodia, where they held meetings with officials from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, the Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation, the Ministry of Tourism, the Royal Academy of Cambodia, and National University of Battambang. During the meetings, they discussed the organisation of academic and student exchanges, the development of joint academic programmes, and the conclusion of cooperation agreements. 

Indian Corner opens at St Petersburg University 

On 5 April, the opening ceremony of an Indian Corner was held at the M Gorky Scientific Library of St Petersburg University. The event was attended by: Kumar Gaurav, Consul General of the Republic of India in St Petersburg; Alexey Rodionov, Senior Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Asian and African Studies at St Petersburg University; Devendra Nath Tiwari, Professor of Banaras Hindu University, invited to St Petersburg University as part of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Indian Council for Cultural Relations and St Petersburg University under the Visiting Professor programme; and other guests. 

During the ceremony, Kumar Gaurav, Consul General of India in St Petersburg, donated books on Indian culture and history to the University. Marina Karpova, Director of the M Gorky Scientific Library of St Petersburg University, also spoke about the books on India in the University library’s collections and the exhibition of Indian manuscripts. At the end of the event, a leading dancer of the Mayuri Dance Group performed for the guests.

Organisation of the teaching and learning process 

Over the past week, 18 enquiries were addressed to the Senior Vice-Rector for Academic Activities. The majority of enquiries relate to preparation of various documents. An analysis of the information on the organisation of the teaching and learning process provided by the heads of academic and research subdivisions has been carried out. Classes are held in due order according to the timetable. As of 5 April 2024, the information was not sent by the administration of the Faculty of Law. 

Over the past week, meetings were held with student activists: group heads, and representatives of student councils and student scientific societies to name just a few. They discussed issues with organising the teaching and learning process. The meetings were held at: the Institute of History; the Institute of Medicine; the Institute of Philosophy; the Faculty of Applied Mathematics and Control Processes; the Faculty of Sociology; the Faculty of Philology; the Faculty of Economics; and the College of Physical Training and Sports, Economics and Technology; and the Medical College.

Accepting applications for academic transfer and reinstatement to St Petersburg University 

St Petersburg University continues to accept applications from students of other universities for academic transfer to St Petersburg University, and applicants for reinstatement at the University. The deadline for submitting documents is 12 April. Information about assessment tests for applicants for academic transfer and reinstatement and procedure rules is published on the website of St Petersburg University. According to Marina Lavrikova, Senior Vice-Rector for Academic Activities at St Petersburg University, the application and documents are submitted electronically in the Personal Account of the student at St Petersburg University. The advantages in the event of a competitive situation can be: publications, grants, prizes in intellectual contests and high academic performance. 

The assessment test schedule and information about the number of vacancies will be published no later than 15 April. 

The meeting of the Central Transfer and Reinstatement Committee at St Petersburg University and the Committee for Changing the Basis of Study will take place on 22 April in accordance with Order No 3206/1 "On holding an additional meeting of the Central Transfer and Reinstatement Committee the Committee for Changing the Basis of Study" dated 21 March 2024. Students who pass the assessment tests will be transferred to an even semester of study. If necessary, they will be provided with an individual study plan and an individual timetable for examinations and pass/fail tests that need to be retaken.

Round table "Training of personnel for knowledge-intensive industries and enterprises in the real sector of the economy" 

The round table "Training of personnel for knowledge-intensive industries and enterprises in the real sector of the economy" was held at St Petersburg University. The participants discussed issues related to the opening of specialised classes and programmes at schools in St Petersburg and the Leningrad Region, aimed to promote an interdisciplinary approach in the study of natural sciences and bring together science, practice and modern technologies together. 

The event brought together the representatives of key educational and scientific organisations participating in the creation and work of the ‘Kurchatov classes’. They discussed the features of including new educational modules and activities in the learning and teaching process, forms of extracurricular activities, and upcoming joint scientific, educational and career guidance events. One of the upcoming events that will unite talented students this spring will be the Olympiad for schoolchildren in physics, held under the auspices of St Petersburg University and the National Research Centre "Kurchatov Institute". 

The round table was co-chaired by Aleksandr Babich, Senior Vice-Rector for Youth Policy and Admissions at St Petersburg University, and Sergey Vorobyev, Scientific Secretary at "B.P. Konstantinov Petersburg Nuclear Physics Institute" of the National Research Center "Kurchatov Institute". The event brought together directors and representatives of the schools where the project is being implemented; the Academy of Talents of St Petersburg; research institutes; and the University. 

The initiator of the all-Russian project, which today unites 12 regions, was Mikhail Kovalchuk, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Dean of the Faculty of Physics at St Petersburg University, President of the National Research Centre "Kurchatov Institute". Within the framework of the project, St Petersburg University will act as the lead organisation supervising scientific, educational and methodological work for schools in St Petersburg. 

Since the training programmes include a large-scale practical component and introduce cutting-edge technologies, an excursion to the educational resource centre in the field of "Physics" at the St Petersburg University Research Park was organised for guests of the University. On the basis of the resource centre, a Laboratory Experimental Site for Schoolchildren has been opened. It is a unique educational and research environment, where students in grades 7 to 11 in St Petersburg, the Leningrad Region, the Northwestern Federal District and other regions of Russia constantly come to conduct laboratory work and participate in workshops, lectures and seminars. St Petersburg University can provide these opportunities to students of the "Kurchatov classes" to carry out academic and laboratory work at the University.

Internship programme of the All-Russian Student Olympiad "I am a Professional" 

The internship programme of the All-Russian Student Olympiad "I am a Professional" has started. It is aimed at students of different areas of study. For three months, they can become part of the team of the project "I am a Professional", i.e. one of the projects of the presidential platform "Russia is a Land of Opportunity", which is being implemented with the support of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation.

The internship programme covers five areas of the All-Russian Student Olympiad "I am a Professional". Among them are the following: HR, press service, department for working with commercial partners, creative department and strategic communications department. Interns will become familiar with the work processes within the Olympiad, take part in the preparation of upcoming events, learn about the corporate culture of the project, and also acquire the skills necessary to successfully enter the labour market. 

The programme offers internship positions such as HR manager, text writer, text writer with social media skills, account manager, photographer, designer, and event organiser. Candidates who have passed the selection will be able to contribute to the promotion of the Olympiad and introduce new ideas into the organisation of a large-scale youth project. 

The internship will last three months and will be held in two formats: remote and full-time for participants from Moscow.

Free Legal Assistance Day 

St Petersburg University hosted the Free Legal Assistance Day. Eight residents of the Northern Capital of Russia turned for help to the Legal Clinic at St Petersburg University on the Free Legal Assistance Day. Their questions were answered by the University lawyers and specialists from the Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights. 

St Petersburg residents needed help in protecting their housing, property, social, and environmental rights. They complained about the lack of heating in an apartment building, a flooded basement, and expressed disagreement with the amount of household charges. St Petersburg residents were also interested in what to do to ensure that damaged poplars, planted back in the 1950s, were cut down in the area. There was a question: how to protect yourself when you fell into the hands of scammers and, under their influence, were forced to part with your property. One of the questions with which residents of St Petersburg turned to lawyers was whether the work of an enterprise specialising in the removal and processing of medical waste was legal. 

Consultants of the Legal Clinic at St Petersburg University and employees of the Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights in St Petersburg studied all the documents that can helped unravel sometimes very difficult legal issues. Human Rights Commissioner Svetlana Agapitova took control of some of the enquiries; consultants from the University Legal Clinic will continue to work on other enquiries. 

Traditionally, the University Legal Clinic provides free legal assistance to certain categories of citizens: students, pensioners, people with disabilities, adoptive parents and anyone whose income does not exceed two and a half subsistence minimums. Consultations are held during academic semesters. Law students, under the supervision of the members of the academic staff, i.e. legal practitioners, answer questions from the fields of labour, civil, administrative, civil procedural, housing and social security law.

Transfer of books from St Petersburg University to Pryazovskyi State Technical University 

The scientific and technical library of Pryazovskyi State Technical University (Mariupol, Donetsk People’s Republic) received a valuable gift from St Petersburg University and St Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering. It is more than 3,000 books to replenish the fund of educational and scientific literature. 

The library at Pryazovskyi State Technical University expressed sincere gratitude to colleagues from the M Gorky Scientific Library at St Petersburg University, the Publishing House at St Petersburg University, the scientific and technical library at St Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering. They responded to the request, collected books and organised their delivery to Pryazovskyi State Technical University. The university’s collections have been replenished with literature on higher mathematics, physics, chemistry, construction and architecture, information technology, history, sociology and psychology, economics and management, linguistics and literary criticism. 

For students at Pryazovskyi State Technical University, these books are not just necessary help in mastering academic disciplines, they are an opportunity to feel the friendly support of universities in the twin city.

Organising the work of museums at universities and scientific organisations 

Currently, universities and scientific organisations subordinate to the Russian Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation have 247 museums of various legal forms, which store over 3.3 million museum objects included in the Museum Fund of the Russian Federation. Determining their legal status remains an important topic for legislators and the expert community. 

From 27 to 29 March, in Moscow, the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, and the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation organised a series of methodological seminars on issues of legal regulation of the work of museums in educational and scientific organisations. Employees of universities and scientific institutes, experts from the Ministry of Science and Higher Education and the Ministry of Culture of Russia took part in the seminars. 

On 29 March, there was a methodological seminar on organising the work of museums of educational institutions of higher education and scientific organisations that are subordinate to the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, and the Northwestern and Ural Federal Districts. During the seminar, Elena Chernova, Senior Vice-Rector of St Petersburg University, made the report "Museums and collections of St Petersburg University: preservation and development". 

She said that the University has eight museums and the Herbarium of St Petersburg University. The museum collection of St Petersburg University is comparable to the collection of the State Hermitage and numbers about three million items. They are widely used in scientific research and academic programmes (The University museums: a victorious leap from the past into the future. Part 2). From 2019 to 2022, the University museums were registered in the State Catalogue of the Museum Fund of the Russian Federation and included in the classifier of organisations, enterprises and cultural institutions. 

Display and exhibition activities are carried out in the following areas. 

• In-museum exhibitions in the halls of St Petersburg University, i.e. in the Diaghilev Museum of Modern Art; in the Vladimir Nabokov Museum; and academic halls 
• External exhibitions in Russia. From 2022 to 2024, five transactions were completed for the temporary exhibition of objects from the Museum Fund of the Russian Federation through the register of transactions of the State Catalogue 
• Online exhibitions. They were initiated due to the pandemic. From 2022 to 2023, 36 online exhibitions were developed

The number of display and exhibition events held by the museums at St Petersburg University is growing. In 2022, there were 54 events, while in 2023 there were 69 events. 

St Petersburg University creates conditions to ensure accessibility of exhibitions and collections for visitors. Since 2022, the University museums have joined the programme "Pushkin card" for popularising cultural events among young people. St Petersburg University is a permanent partner of the Open City project. Virtual tours of the museums of St Petersburg University have been developed and published on the website of St Petersburg University.