Novosibirsk State University

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Novosibirsk State University
Новосибирский Государственный Университет (НГУ)
Motto We Will Not Make You Smarter, We Will Teach You How To Think!
Established 1959
Type Public
Rector Nikolay S. Dikanskiy
Students 5,200
Location Novosibirsk, Russia
Website www.nsu.ru

Novosibirsk State University was founded in May 1959 in the USSR by Soviet academicians Mikhail Alekseevich Lavrentiev, Sergei Lvovich Sobolev and Sergey Alekseyevich Khristianovich in a program of estabilishing a Siberian Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Novosibirsk State University is one of the most famous universities in Russia, although is somewhat young. The university is located 20 kilometers from the city of Novosibirsk, a cultural and industrial center of Siberia. The total number of students in the year 1999 was 5200.

Contents

[edit] History

Three fellow members of the USSR Academy of Sciences Lavrentiev, Sobolev, and Khristianovich, decided to bring international level research over the Urals from Moscow to the vast territories of Siberia. Siberia possessed copious natural resources, but lacked large research institutions which would promote economic development and growth in the region. The idea was implemented with the establishment of the Siberian Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences in 1958 near the large industrial city of Novosibirsk. A new academic town (Akademgorodok) started to grow rapidly and half a year later a new university was founded to train young researchers for the newly born science center.

Novosibirsk State University's main building, InterWeek 2006 festival
Novosibirsk State University's main building, InterWeek 2006 festival

Thus, in May 1959 the USSR Higher Education Ministry issued a decree to begin studies in Novosibirsk State University on September 1, 1959 with Ilia N. Vekua as rector (Russian for president or chancellor of a university). The July 20, 1959 issue of the newspaper Pravda reported the opening of the new university and announced admittance with entrance examinations for future students from all over the USSR in the period of August 1 through 20. 139 first-year students were admitted as full-time students and 119 as part-time students. In addition, the best students from other Soviet universities were selected as second-year students. The applicants for chemistry and physics accounted for eight and five persons per vacancy respectively, with three persons for mathematics, mechanics and geology.

The official opening of the University took place on September 26, 1959 at the Concert Hall of the Opera and Ballet Theatre in Novosibirsk.

First lectures were held in the building of a secondary school, and first dormitories for the students were just tents amidst the forest; but the spirit of novelty and the lust for education and research created a strong motivation among the first students.

At first, the only department of the University, the Department of Natural Sciences, combined Mathematics, Physics, Mechanics, Chemistry and Geology. Between 1960 and 1967 new departments began to separate into their own disciplines. In December, 1963 the first graduates of the Novosibirsk State University, including 26 physicists, 24 mathematicians and ten researchers in mechanics, received diplomas.

[edit] Organization

[edit] Department of Natural Sciences

http://www.fen.nsu.ru/

The Department of Natural Sciences was the only NSU department when the university was founded in 1959. The Department of Mathematics and Mechanics, the Department of Physics and the Department of Geology and Geophysics eventually segregated from the Department of Natural Sciences. Therefore, historically, its curriculum inherited a significant load of Physics and Mathematics courses, which is quite unusual for typical Russian Chemistry and Biology majors. Another reason for this emphasis in exact sciences was that the first deans of the department were prominent soviet physical chemists V. Voevodskii and D. Knorre.

The Department of Natural Sciences offers majors in Chemistry and Biology. In five years of training the graduates receive a Specialist's degree. The training program includes two years of research practice in specific area of Chemistry and Biology with writing a thesis. From 1992 to 2000 a major in Environmental Chemistry (also known as Ecology) was offered based on 2-level training system (4 years of undergraduate training for Bachelor's degree and 2 years of training for Master's degree). The program was based on a Chemistry major curriculum with addition of extra mathematics, informatics and biology courses. Since 1995 a major in Medical Biology has been offered. The aim of this enterprise was to begin training Doctors of Medicine in the department. A state license allowing the training of general practitioners was obtained in 2002 . Finally, in 2004 another new department, the Department of Medicine sprung from the Department of Natural Sciences [1].

[edit] Department of Mathematics and Mechanics

The Department of Mechanics and Mathematics was founded in 1961.[2] Before separating out in the frameworks of a proper department, the training in mathematics and mechanics was offered first at the Natural Sciences Department (1959), then at the Physical Mathematical Department (1960). Since 1976, the Department of Mechanics and Mathematics has conducted training in applied mathematics as well. The founders of the Department of Mechanics and Mathematics were such distinguished scientists as Academicians M.A.Lavrent'ev, I.N.Vekua, A.I.Mal'tsev, and S.L.Sobolev.

In the spring of 1991, the Academic Council of the Department came to the decision to accept a 2-level system of training (undergraduate and postgraduate). Having completed the 4-year (undergraduate) program of the Department, students normally submit a thesis or take a final (state) examination in mathematics (about 5 or 10% of graduates) and get a Bachelor's degree in mathematics, applied mathematics and informatics (computer science) or mechanics. About half of the graduates have the opportunity to continue their education at 2-year postgraduate courses leading to a Master's degree. The department was one of the pioneers in Russia which start offering Master programs in mathematics, computer science, mechanics, mathematics and applied mathematics, mechanics and applied mathematics. The first Masters graduated from the department in 1993.

[edit] Education and Research

The Novosibirsk State University is a coeval and a creation of the Siberian Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences. The "Fathers of Siberian Science" believed that it was impossible to organize a scientific center without solving the problem of training young researchers. On the other hand, almost 80% of the Siberian Branch staff consists of NSU graduates. Journalists still argue whether the Siberian Branch gave birth to the University or the University built up the Siberian Branch.

In the USSR and subsequently in Russia, universities serve primarily as educational institutions, in which faculty members rarely do research and focus on training students. Research and graduate training exist in separate research institutions. The main idea of NSU founders was to combine research and education in the University by inviting scientists from the nearby research institutions in Akademgorodok as part-time university faculty. This allowed students to gain laboratory experience in addition to regular coursework. Additionally, it allowed students to undertake the writing of theses.

This idea propelled NSU toward becoming arguably one of the best Russian universities. However, this design also led to a number of disadvantages. In official ratings of Russian universities NSU is not near the top. This may be attributed to the fact that the ratings do not consider part-time staff and only account for volumes of the university library, while NSU students also have access to a number of institute libraries as well as the large Academy of Sciences Library which is located across the street from the main University building. Another disadvantage is that NSU trains researchers mainly for the Academy of Sciences; therefore, non-science majors are underrepresented in the University. To attempt to correct this imbalance, Law, Medicine, Foreign Languages, and a few other departments were added recently. However, in conditions of post-perestroika financial crisis in Russian higher education, this innovation has received a great deal of criticism. Critics say that new departments drain money from the science departments from which NSU draws its reputation.

[edit] Akademgorodok research institutes associated with NSU

NSU graduates usually receive a Specialist's diploma. Soviet and Russian Specialist's diploma falls between the Western Bachelor's and Master's diplomas. However, since NSU students are required to do research for the last two years of their training and write a thesis, NSU Specialist's diploma is generally accepted as Master's outside of Russia. Some NSU majors grant Bachelor's and Master's diplomas.

[edit] Legends and Traditions

  • Who is the Rosa Shafigulina?'

During the Soviet era, textbooks for learning English were stuffed with texts on communist movements in English-speaking countries. One of the textbooks offered to NSU students contained a particularly remarkable text entitled "The Most Inspiring Letter Ever Written to Winston", famous for its nearly surrealistic subject and peculiar grammar. Many generations of NSU students, particularly those that graduated in the 1960s through 1990s, used a line adopted from the text as a humorous greeting for their classmates.

Q: "Who is the Rosa Shafigulina?"
A: "She is a simple Soviet girl."

[edit] Novosibirsk State University People

[edit] Faculty

[edit] Alumni

[edit] External link

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