University of Helsinki

The University of Helsinki is Finland's largest and oldest academic institution and an innovative centre of science and thinking. Since 1640, the University of Helsinki has contributed to the establishment of a fair and equal society that is considered one of the best in the world. The University of Helsinki is a public research university located in Helsinki, Finland, since 1829, but founded in the city of Turku in 1640 as the Royal Academy of Turku, at that time part of the Swedish Empire. It is the oldest and largest university in Finland, with the widest range of disciplines available. In 2020, around 31,600 students were enrolled in the degree programs of the university, spread across 11 faculties and 11 research institutes. Remaining true to its traditionally strong Humboldtian ethos, the University of Helsinki places heavy emphasis on high-quality teaching and research of a top international standard. It is a member of various prominent international university networks, such as Europaeum, UNICA, and the Utrecht Network, and is a founding member of the League of European Research Universities.

The Aleksanteri Institute Finnish Center for Russian and Eastern European Studies is an independent institute of the University of Helsinki. It functions as a national centre of research, study and expertise pertaining to Russia and Eastern Europe, particularly in the social sciences and humanities. The Institute actively promotes cooperation and interaction between the academic world, public administration, business life and civil society, both in Finland and abroad.

The Aleksanteri Institute coordinates multi-disciplinary study programs at various academic levels. The doctoral program and the Master's School in Russian and Eastern European studies are open to students from Finnish universities. There is also a study program for East Central Europe, Balkan and Baltic studies that offer the possibility of an MA diploma and a minor subject program in Ukrainian studies.

Research at the Aleksanteri Institute concentrates on six focus areas: Economic Diversification, The Welfare Society, Democracy, Foreign Policy, The Social Constitution of Culture, The Cold War and its Consequences.

The institute coordinates and participates in research projects and networks involving scholars from all over the world. In 2012 it was granted five-year funding for a Finland Distinguished Professor (FiDiPro) project. Since 2008 it has also hosted a program for visiting scholars. The program offers international scholars (holding a PhD) one-to-three-month research stay at the Aleksanteri Institute and the University of Helsinki. In addition to Russia, Eastern Europe and Scandinavia, scholars from Spain, Italy, the US, Britain, Canada, France and China have also attended.