THE IMMANUEL KANT BALTIC FEDERAL UNIVERCITY
Часть 1
The University is located in an exclave of the Russian Federation and thus it links together Russia and the West in the fields of research and education.
BPU is open to cooperation with any individuals and organizations, which pursue the goal of dynamic development of education, research and culture.
Baltic Federal University (BFU) began life as Kaliningrad State Pedagogical Institute (1948-1967), which was one of the first institutions of higher education established in the Kaliningrad region. KSU attained university status in 1967. At present RSU is the leading educational, research and cultural centre in the Kaliningrad region, the western-most part of Russia. It is committed to maintaining the best of traditional methods of the Russian state system of higher education as well as to adopting the best of innovative and up-to-date approaches to research and teaching.
BFU is a classical university, offering a diverse range of traditional disciplines from both the Natural Sciences and the Humanities. However, the spectrum of taught courses is steadily growing, as the University is constantly introducing new cutting-edge courses designed to meet the changing demands of the region.
BFU consists of 12 faculties and has more than 13,000 students, engaged in undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Alongside Russian students from the Kaliningrad region and other parts of Russia, RSU educates young people from Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Poland, Germany and other countries. In 2000 the academic staff consisted of 607 people, among them were 253 associate professors, 54 full professors, 20 academicians and corresponding members of Russian and international Academies of Sciences.
BFU maintains the traditions of its predecessor - Konigsberg University "Albertina" founded by Duke Albrecht in 1544. The history of Albertina is littered with the names of famous academics: Johann Hamann, Johann Herder, Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel, Herman Helmholtz, David Hilbert. The University's greatest alumnus is Immanuel Kant, whose name will be forever linked with the city of Konigsberg and Albertina University.
BFU has an established tradition of studying the heritage of Albertina. It is actively involved in Kant studies and established the Kant Society to explore various aspects of his philosophy. Research on the history of science at Konigsberg University and the study of works by the Albertina scientists and writers have resulted in the publication of a number of research papers. Special priority is given to the study of cultural links between Koenigsberg and Russia, which began in the 16th century. The BFU library is actively engaged in the restoration of the former Koenigsberg libraries, including the Wallenrodt library, one of the most famous book collections in Europe from that period.
Apart from being the leading educational establishment of the Kaliningrad region, RSU is also a large research centre. Research results and achievements by staff and students feed into teaching at undergraduate and postgraduate level. The number of regional, all-Russian and international research conferences hosted by BFU is steadily increasing each year. BFU researchers play a major role in solving economic, political, environmental and cultural problems in the Kaliningrad region. The results of the research are regularly published by the BFU Press, which annually produces more than 100 textbooks and collections of research papers. Current research activities are given full coverage in the University's newspaper "Universitet" as well as on the BFU website.
One of the University's strengths is its international cooperation. BFU has fostered many links with the universities of the Baltic Sea region, France, Greece and USA. BFU is an active and enthusiastic member of a number of international projects funded by the EU and other sources. The University also has a full membership in the European University Association.
The University has 9 buildings, which provide over 36,000 m2 of teaching and learning space. There are 3 halls of residence. Additional resources include numerous research labs as well as 2 field sites. BFU is proud of the University Museum and the Botanical Garden.
Часть 2
UNIVERSITY FACILITIES
BFU is proud of its research library. It has more than 500,000 volumes and this number is constantly growing. The library has a staff of 70 friendly specialists that helps 12,400 readers to find their way around the complex world of information and make the most of library resources. The library staff provides assistance to teachers and students, and additionally to medical professionals, as a result of the merger of the Regional Medical Library and the Kaliningrad State University library in 2001.
The BFU library has 5 different locations and 8 reading rooms capable of seating 400 people. It also has an inter-library exchange system. An electronic catalogue was developed in 1995.
In 1984 the library received a part of the most valuable Wallenrodt Library, which originally belonged to the library of Koenigsberg University. This book collection consists of 5,000 volumes. 10% of them are editions published in the 16th - 18th centuries. Many of them are rarities, being the only surviving copy. The BFU research library participates in many international projects such as book and manuscript searches, microfilming of the Wallenrodt library and the publication of the catalogue of antique editions.
The tradition of preserving the Albertina cultural heritage is maintained by the University Museum, which was opened in 1995. The collection reflects the history of Kaliningrad University and its predecessors - Kaliningrad State Pedagogical Institute and Koenigsberg University. Among the most interesting exhibits are editions of Kant's works dating from that time, portraits and sculptures of Kant, items of student life at Koenigsberg University, a collection of medical equipment from the Albertina clinic and the documents relating to the foundation of KSU and its first years.
The Botanical Garden has been a part of KSU since 1967. It was founded in 1904 on the site of the Koenigsberg municipal garden. The Botanical Garden is not only the location for student research and practical work but also a place where the public can relax. The arboretum, hothouses, conservatories, greenhouses and lake are situated in an area of 13.65 hectares. There is a collection of more than 2,500 plants from 61 families from almost every corner of the globe, including over 150 rare plants.
There is a large collection of rare and valuable species of trees and shrubs in the arboretum. Most plants blossom and bear fruit. The conservatories also have a rich collection of rare plants (about 700 species) arranged according to geographical divisions: tropical, palmaceous, subtropical and cactaceous.
The staff of the Botanical Garden conducts research on the introduction and acclimatization of ornamental plants. Samples of many interesting acclimatized species are planted in the towns of the Kaliningrad region. The Botanical Garden has developed strong links with more than 150 Russian and foreign botanical gardens. It is a member of the Eurasian Association of Botanical Gardens and the International Council of Botanical Gardens on Plant Protection.
The University is the regional centre of access to the national network of telecommunications for institutions of higher education in the Kaliningrad region. In October 1999 the Internet Centre was opened at KSU under the auspices of the support programme of the Russian regional universities in the field of telecommunications. The programme was funded by the Government of the Russian Federation and the Open Society Institute (Soros Foundation). The Internet Centre provides access to information on the Internet. It includes open access classrooms, a local area network (LAN) laboratory and a WEB laboratory, the main function of which is to create high quality multimedia products and to make them available on the Internet. Videoconference facilities are also provided at the Internet Centre.
BFU pays a lot of attention to the development of new information and computer technologies. This trend - one of the most dynamic and promising - has been developing since 1991. During this period the University has adopted the latest technologies and is developing a portal, intended to assist research and to support the Kaliningrad region educational system.
In 1991 the Kaliningrad Regional Centre for New Information Technologies was opened at KSU. The technologies and software designed at the University are used for data processing and analysis in various fields - from land tenure to crime detection. Corporate information systems developed at the University are widely used by Kaliningrad regional and city authorities, various administrative bodies in other Russian cities and the CIS countries, as well as by major companies such as "Lukoil". The software assists the user in various tasks including modelling man-made catastrophes, environmental monitoring, management support systems and economic forecasting. New multimedia technologies and computer design are rapidly developing. The University IT engineers are designing software products for the Internet.
The introduction of new technologies in support of academic activities and research work facilitates the development of the University. In-service training of IT specialists is regularly held. Many IT specialists have been certified by SUN, IBM and Microsoft.
In 2002 the Centre for New Information Technologies and the Faculty of Geography jointly published a unique geographical atlas of the Kaliningrad region.
Часть 3