• A
  • A
  • A
  • ABC
  • ABC
  • ABC
  • А
  • А
  • А
  • А
  • А
Regular version of the site

HSE and University of Bologna sign new agreement on dual-degree programme

Students in HSE’s Political Analysis and Public Policy master’s programme who have studied for at least a semester at the University of Bologna and successfully defended their thesis will be able to receive degrees from both universities. Similarly, Italian students who study for a semester or a year at the HSE will have the same opportunity.

The universities will select the first group of students for the dual-degree programme as early as this summer. In Russia, this will include students from HSE’s Political Analysis and Public Policy master’s programme, and in Italy, students of the University of Bologna’s master’s programme in international relations. No more than five individuals from each school can be admitted to the dual-degree programme in 2014. HSE’s Department of Public Policy said the highest chance for selection lies with “motivated students who speak English confidently (the programme is in English) and are capable of conducting public policy research in an international and global context.”

In order to have the chance to receive two degrees, students must accumulate between 30 and 60 credits at the partnering university, that is, study at the university anywhere between a semester and a year. Students will have their first semester at their “native” university, after which they can chose from one of three options in continuing their education. Students are suggested to complete one of the following at the partnering university: (1) their second or third semester, (2) their second and third semester, or (3) their third and fourth semester.

The students themselves decide where – in Russia or in Italy – they will defend their master’s thesis. It is necessary to defend the thesis once in front of a committee that will consist of instructors from both the HSE and the University of Bologna.

This is far from being the first joint project between the Public Policy Department and its partners from Bologna. One might recall, for example, that master’s students with a human rights specialization are able to participate in the international programme European Regional Master’s Degree in Human Rights and Democracy in South East Europe (ERMA) and as a result receive three diplomas – one from the HSE, one from the University of Bologna and one from the University of Sarajevo.

Work on the dual-degree programme lasted for five years, beginning in 2009 when a framework contract was signed for cooperation between the Higher School of Economics and the University of Bologna. Agreeing on all the terms was not a simple matter. “When substantial agreements on the joint programme had already been reached, a stumbling point ended up being the different requirements for the timeframes and formats of enrolment at Russian and Italian universities,” Nina Belyaeva, the head of HSE’s Public Policy Department, recalls. “Often, the legal systems of different countries are not too well fitted for the quickly developing reality of academic partnership. In such situations, only well-established contacts and experience in cooperation help to ultimately carry out what was conceived,” she said.

Over the last five years, the department and its Italian partners actively developed teacher exchanges. Nearly 50 individuals took part in the student exchange programme in this time: 27 HSE students from eight departments and divisions (public policy is an interdisciplinary area) went to Italy, and 21 students from the University of Bologna came to study in HSE’s master’s programme. In addition, the HSE and the University of Bologna signed an agreement in 2013 on a joint advanced postgraduate programme in political science.

See also:

There Is No Way Back from Globalization, So We Must Learn to Trust Each Other

On January 14, 2019, Professor Giovanni Tria spoke at HSE on contemporary globalization, including its consequences and problems. Below are the key highlights of his talk.

Political Analysis and Public Policy Programme Leads to Exciting International Career

After graduating two years ago from HSE’s Master’s programme in Political Analysis and Public Policy, Svetlana Kosmakova took a job with the International Committee of the Red Cross as a Migration Program Officer. She recently spoke with Sanjay Rajhans of the HSE News Service about her studies at HSE, the trajectory of her career, and what advice she would offer prospective students in Political Analysis and Public Policy.

Educational Experience in Russia

Matthew Boadi-Ampong from Ghana is a first-year student of Master’s programme in Political Analysis and Public Policy. He has shared his impressions of studying at HSE and living in Russia.

HSE Graduate Applies Lessons to Work in Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Cultural Affairs

Since 2008, Indra Prasetya has been working as Chief of Protocol at the Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Cultural Affairs. A graduate of Gadjah Mada University with a degree in Social and Political Science, the 33-year old native of Kebumen, Indonesia went on to spend two years in the HSE Public Policy Department studying Political Analysis and Public Policy.

Russian and Italian Intellectuals Speak a Common Language

In late May Moscow hosted a Russian-Italian research conference marking the anniversary of the birth of Italian philosopher Benedetto Croce. The conference entitled 'The Legacy of Benedetto Croce in the 21st Century' was organized by and held at the HSE's Humanities Faculty in conjunction with the Italian Cultural Institute in Moscow.

Spring School Provides Italian Students Intense Exposure to Russian Culture

‘Texts and Places: Introduction to Russian History, Language and Culture’ (I testi dei luoghi: introduzione alla storia, alla cultura e alla lingua russa), an international Spring School at HSE organized jointly by Julia Ivanova, leading research fellow at the Poletayev Institute for Theoretical and Historical Studies in the Humanities, and the University of Eastern Piedmont Amedeo Avogadro, took place from March 15 to 23.

Student from Morocco: from Winter School to HSE Master's Program

Hamid Ait-El-Kaid is a second-year student from Morocco of the Master's programme in Political Analysis and Public Policy. His first exposure to HSE took place during a Winter School for prospective students in February 2014. After learning about the Public Policy programme, he decided to apply to HSE.

Migration Expert Stresses Importance of Diversity Ahead of Panel on European Refugee Crisis

On October 22, the HSE Public Policy Department and the Course on Comparative Migration Policy will hold a panel discussion on the European refugee crisis. Dr. Mahama Tawat, Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Social Sciences and a specialist in comparative migration policy, will serve as one of the panel members. Dr. Tawat recently spoke with the HSE news service about his research interests, what attracted him to HSE and his views on tolerance and diversity.

Policymakers Are Like Modern Sisyphuses

On April 13-17, the HSE Public Policy Department will host aseries of lectures by Professor Philippe Zittoun, an internationally recognized expert in policymaking and policy research. He is currently Research Professor in Political Science, University of Lyon (LET-ENTPE); Research Fellow at PACTE, Science Po Grenoble; and Vice-Chair of the Research Committee "Public Policy and Administration" of IPSA. He was a Visiting Professor at Yale University in 2010.

Mathematics and the Arts: What Does Geometry and Calculus Have to Do with Salvador Dali and War and Peace?

On Tuesday 31st March 2015, Piergiorgio Odifreddi, Professor of Mathematical Logics at the University of Turin, will give a public lecture at HSE titled ‘Mathematics and the Arts’. The lecture is held in cooperation with Istituto Italiano di Cultura, and will examine the deep and close relationships between the objects of Mathematics and of the Arts.Professor Odifreddi, who is also a well-known journalist will talk about ‘a mathematical reading of the arts’, and will present a short history of the visual arts from a mathematical perspective. He talked to the HSE English News service about the surprising connections his unusual approach reveals.