Tallinn University

Tallinn University

Tallinna Ülikool
Motto	Thinking unlimited!
Type	Public
Established	1919, 2005
President	Tiit Land
Academic staff	392 (2016)
Administrative staff	423 (2016)
Students	7,668 (2016)
Undergraduates	4,766 (2016)
Postgraduates	2,902 (2016)
Doctoral students	349 (2016)
Location	Tallinn, Harju County, Estonia 59°26′19″N 24°46′17″E / 59.43861°N 24.77139°E / 59.43861; 24.77139Coordinates: 59°26′19″N 24°46′17″E / 59.43861°N 24.77139°E / 59.43861; 24.77139
Affiliations	EUA, UNICA
Mascot	Eksmati
Website	www.tlu.ee

Tallinn University (TU; Estonian: Tallinna Ülikool, TLÜ) is a public research university in Estonia. Located in the centre of Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia, Tallinn University is one of the three largest institutions of higher education in the country. In the 2019 edition of QS World University rankings, it has been ranked among the top 1000 universities in the world.^[1]

History

Tallinn University's predecessor, Tallinn Teachers' Seminar, was founded in 1919. Tallinn University in its present form was established on 18 March 2005 as the result of a merger of several universities and research institutions in Tallinn: Academic Library of Estonia (1946), Baltic Film and Media School (1992/97), Estonian Institute of Humanities (1988), Institute of History (1946) and Tallinn Pedagogical University (1919/52/92). In 2015, Tallinn University underwent a structural reform, whereby its 20+ structural units (the legacy of the numerous mergers leading to its establishment) were reorganized into six schools in order to optimize funding and eliminate overlap between units in research and teaching.

Academics

As of 2016, about 8,000 degree students were enrolled at Tallinn University (with over 13,000 more taking part in continuing education programmes). This makes Tallinn University the third largest provider of higher education in Estonia. Among degree students, 8.7% were international. There are 837 full-time employees at the University, of which 409 are academic staff. 11.1% of the faculty are international.^[3]

Education and research at Tallinn University focus on five core interdisciplinary fields: educational innovation, digital and media culture, cultural competences, healthy and sustainable lifestyle and society and open governance. Each of the fields is represented by a school of the University: School of Educational Sciences, Baltic Film, Media, Arts and Communication School; School of Humanities, School of Natural Sciences and Health, and School of Governance, Law and Society. The School of Digital Technologies is the sixth school, contributing to all of the fields.

Tallinn University's Baltic Film, Media, Arts and Communication School is the only institution in Northern Europe teaching film, television and audiovisual production in English, and one of the largest film schools in the region.^[4] Its student body represents over 40 countries worldwide.^[5]

Tallinn University actively participates in international research projects. It is one of only three universities in the Baltics whose research intensity has been classified as "very high" by Quacquarelli Symonds.^[6]

Tallinn University was ranked among the top 1000 universities in the world (in the 800-1000 bracket) in the 2019 edition of QS World University Rankings^[7]. In 2018, Tallinn University placed 69th^[8] in the EECA (Emerging Europe and Central Asia) rankings published by Quacquarelli Symonds, up from 87th in the 2016 edition.^[9] In QS World University Rankings by Subject, Tallinn University placed in the 201-250 bracket in Sociology, making it the best university in the Baltic States in the discipline.^[10]

Campus

Mare building

Terra building on Narva Maantee

Tallinn University's main campus buildings have Latin names.

Terra (Latin: earth) is the main and oldest building on Tallinn University's campus. It was built for the Tallinn English College in 1938. The building is under heritage protection (architects Alar Kotli and Erika Nõva).^[11]

Nova (Latin: new) houses the Baltic Film and Media School. Features include individual and group work rooms, lecture halls, a film studio, a television studio, sound studios, a cinema, a computer class and editing rooms. The building was completed in 2012, and was designed by architects Karli Luik, Maarja Kask and Ralf Lõoke.^[11]

Mare (Latin: sea) was designed to optimise the amount of light penetrating into the building. The building was completed in 2006; the architects were Mattias Agabus, Eero Endjärv, Raul Järg, Priit Pent and Illimar Truverk.^[11]

Astra (Latin: star) is the newest building in the university. This building is features laboratories. The building was designed by Ignar Fjuk and completed in 2012.

Silva (Latin: forest) was completed in 1982 and is a typical example of Soviet architecture. Designed by the architect Ester Liiberg.

Ursa (Latin: bear) was built in 1964 and presently houses the Arts Department.

Internationalisation

Internationalisation is positioned as one of Tallinn University's goals, affecting its development strategies and priorities.^[12] The university offers a range of English-language academic programmes at all levels of study, as well as short courses aimed at international students. As of 2016, Tallinn University ranked third in the Baltic states by the percentage of international students, behind Tallinn University of Technology and slightly ahead of the University of Tartu.^[9] With international faculty comprising 11.1% of the total faculty^[3], it was also ranked among the top 15 institutions in the Emerging Europe and Central Asia by the percentage of international faculty^[8].

Tallinn University currently maintains over 40 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^[12]. The university also organises Summer and Winter Schools, which host about 300 participants from 50 countries every year.^[13][14]

Structure

Notable staff

• Rein Raud, professor of Cultural Theory and Japanese studies
• Mihhail Lotman, semiotician and politician
• Pia Tikka, filmmaker and academic
• Hannes Palang(et)
• Katrin Niglas(et)
• Tobias Ley
• Abel Polese

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to University of Tallinn.

• Official website (in English)