HSE University and Skoltech have signed an agreement on cooperation in research and education. The document was signed by HSE University — St. Petersburg Director Anna Tyshetskaya and Skoltech Vice President for Academic Relations Grigory Kabatyansky. The parties agreed on a strategic partnership in research and education, primarily in physics, applied mathematics, and computer science.

Credit: HSE University — St. Petersburg

The cooperation will encompass joint educational programs, student and faculty internships, sharing research findings, joint writing of research reports, papers, and textbooks, and employment support for HSE and Skoltech graduates.

Before the signing, the parties visited HSE University and Skoltech to gain an understanding the way research is organized and carried out at each of the universities.

The HSE delegation was led by St. Petersburg campus deputy director for education and digital transformation Pavel Kuzmin, who commented: “This in-person visit to Skoltech’s labs helped me get the feel of the scope and potential of our agreement. Now students with a solid theoretical knowledge will be able to put it to the test it in practice by applying the skills acquired at HSE University to gain invaluable experience with cutting-edge equipment. In addition, with the research at the Skoltech labs aimed at addressing real-life challenges from customers and partners, our physicists and mathematicians will be able to appreciate the high relevance of their professions.”

“Two heads are better than one,” Kabatyansky commented. “The agreement will connect students and faculty, theory and practice, science and business. In the short term, we expect to launch an academic mobility program for HSE students who will spend one term working at our labs. Skoltech has state-of-the-art equipment and offers virtually unlimited opportunities for self-fulfillment. Besides that, the two cities’ historically distinct approaches to acquiring knowledge, which one might refer to as the St. Petersburg and the Moscow school, will help fill the gaps in this cooperation.”

In practical terms, the cooperation program will be implemented by experts from the St. Petersburg School of Physics, Mathematics, and Computer Science of HSE University, says the school’s dean, Mikhail Mukhin. “Strong partnerships are certainly an advantage for our school. Our physics students currently study at three partner departments based at major research institutes: the Ioffe Physical-Technical Institute, the St. Petersburg Branch of the Steklov Mathematical Institute of RAS, and the St. Petersburg Institute of Nuclear Physics. But it is essential to further expand our students’ career opportunities.”

“Cooperation with Skoltech is important to us because it is a great point of attraction that combines science, innovation, and high-quality education,” Mukhin went on. “Skoltech and HSE University — St. Petersburg are similar in that both focus on theoretical and mathematical physics, quantum field theory, materials science, semiconductor physics, and nanophotonics, among other things. We are just launching our PhD programs, and Skoltech has been offering doctoral tracks for a long time. This will expand the options for our MSc graduates choosing where to apply. We hope that Skoltech and HSE University — St. Petersburg will succeed in building a research and education network to the benefit of all. From now on, MSc students will have a chance to take summer internships, study, and work in Skoltech labs. Also, our goals include mutually advantageous joint development of MSc programs, including offerings within the internal academic mobility program.”