Estonian-language university turns 103

1 December marks 103 years from the opening of the Estonian-language University of Tartu. Traditional anniversary events will be held on that occasion. 

On Friday, 25 November at 16:00, the University of Tartu honorary decorations will be presented at the university’s assembly hall. The live broadcast will be available on UTTV. 

On Wednesday, 30 November, the honorary doctors will give public lectures:

• Heinrich Detering “Folksong as a remedy: Samuel Taylor Coleridge in Göttingen” at 16:15 (Jakobi 2-114)
• Martti Antero Koskenniemi “Legal Imagination and the History of International Power” at 15:00–16:30 (the White Hall of the University of Tartu Museum, Lossi 25)
• Joseph S. Krajcik “How can Artificial Intelligence Support STEM Teaching and Learning?” at 16:00 (Liivi 2–127)

On Thursday, 1 December, at 12:00, the anniversary ceremony takes place at the assembly hall. The university’s doctorates and honorary doctorates will be conferred and the University of Tartu “Contribution to Estonian National Identity” award will be presented. While the ceremony is for invited guests, live broadcast will be available for everyone on UTTV. Simultaneous interpretation into English will be provided at the ceremony.

In the evening of 1 December, at 17:00, the traditional torchlight procession starts in front of the Vanemuise 46 academic building, and at 20:00, the anniversary ball begins in Vanemuine Concert Hall.

Honorary doctors

At the senate session on 27 May 2022, the University of Tartu senate appointed five new honorary doctors:

• Professor Heinrich Detering from the University of Göttingen was granted the honorary doctorate in literary studies for his outstanding achievements in literary studies and years of successful cooperation with the University of Tartu Faculty of Arts and Humanities in forming the new generation of researchers of German studies;
• Professor emeritus of the University of Helsinki Martti Antero Koskenniemi was granted the honorary doctorate in law for his outstanding achievements in law and years of successful cooperation with the University of Tartu School of Law in forming the new generation of legal scholars;
• Professor Joseph S. Krajcik from Michigan State University was granted the honorary doctorate in science education for promoting research related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics education and for his effective cooperation with University of Tartu researchers and doctoral students in international projects;
• Professor emeritus Erkki Ruoslahti from Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute was granted the honorary doctorate in medicine for years of cooperation with the University of Tartu in developing the research directions of cancer biology, nanomedicine and drug development;
• Dr Erik Neuman, long-time director of the Swedish Institute of Coastal Research, was granted the honorary doctorate in marine ecology for studying the fish communities in the Baltic Sea and supporting Estonian marine research for many years.

To celebrate the university´s anniversary, the exhibition of wool blankets woven by the native textile students of the Viljandi Culture Academy is open in the lobby of the University of Tartu main building.