How HSE University Is Renewing the Dorms

At the end of 2021, the university administration decided to allocate a substantial amount of money, 54 million roubles, for dormitory renovation. Most of this sum was spent on renovating student kitchens in 114 apartments and replacing domestic appliances.

For the first time, decisions about distributing this investment were made by not only the university administration, but also by HSE students. Following the Rector’s decree, a Project Committee, made up of HSE staff and students, was created.

Vladimir Samoylenko

HSE University Vice-Rector

In 2022, for the first time, a large fund, consisting of 54 million roubles, was allocated for the renovation of our dormitories. Previously, we had only made minor changes such as replacing bed linen, refrigerators and washing machines only when neccessary, and conducting minor repairs, but now we finally have the opportunity to begin a dormitory renovation programme. Our experts analyzed the average life cycle of the equipment and furniture in our dormitories, and decided to update them once every 8 years.

Last autumn, we realized that we did not want to leave the whole process to the university administration, since we believe it is important for us to hear the students' opinion. This is how the Project Committee, which is made up of administration staff and HSE students, appeared. At the beginning of January, we met and discussed proposals, listened to the requests of students, and defined our key tasks.

The main purpose of creating the Project Committee was to establish closer communication with students so that financial decisions were understood not only by the administration, but also by the students.

The biggest project in 2022, for which the major part of the budget was allocated, was re-equipping the kitchens in dormitory 6. Together with the Project Committee, we started renovating the kitchens, supplying them with new furniture and appliances. Now the project is underway, and we’ve made two show apartments (a studio and a 3-room apartment) designed by students of HSE Art and Design School. The reaction of students on social media has been overwhelmingly positive, . The work is continuing, and I hope that it will be completed by the end of the year. The repair is taking longer than we hoped because we need to rehouse students while their apartments are being renovated. The major part of the repairs is scheduled for this summer, but because many students work in summer, we can’t simply evict them and give the entire building over to the workers.

Another project that the students considered to be a priority was renewing the bed linen in buildings No. 2 and No. 3 in Dubki Dormitory. Students have been asking for this for a long time, and now new mattresses and bed linen have been delivered.

The third priority was the issue of replacing conventional pianos in restrooms with electronic ones. This was requested by student representatives on the Project Committee. For me, this request was quite unexpected, but the students convinced me that this would allow those wishing to play music to do it using headphones and without bothering neighbours who might be preparing for classes or relaxing. I think this is a very reasonable request.

In addition, the priority plan of the Project Committee included coworking areas in Dormitory 1. This project has already been partially implemented by carrying out repairs in three rooms, using designs provided by students, and opened a new coworking space in the dorm. New furniture for the remaining two areas has also been bought.

Andrey Mikhailovsky

Member of the Project Committee

As representatives of the student community, we wanted to influence the development of our dorms, understand how new equipmentis purchased, and have a say in how the spaces were being upgraded. We have not been involved in these processes before. The rector heard us and was also interested in students taking part in dorm development. After that, alongr with HSE Vice-Rectors Samoylenko and Zemtsov, we finally formed the Project Committee, which included students from several different HSE dormitories.

All the initiatives we proposed were supported. For the first time, I felt that as a student representative, I could really influence processes at the university and dormitories. The local student councils of each dormitory prepared their own projects, obtained quotes, and selected materials for repairs. We went to onsite to monitor the quality of the repair works, and talked to the managers of the project.

I really enjoyed being part of it all, and I hope that in future we will be able to do even more to ensure that HSE University continues to have the best dormitories.

Dmitry Zemtsov

Vice-Rector

It is very important for us, as representatives of the administration, to receive feedback from the student community. During meetings, we discussed issues of purchasing furniture and equipment, as well as improving the infrastructure of dormitories. We wanted to ensure that students themselves determined which areas were a priority for them, and made the process of allocating budget funds as transparent and understandable as possible. The activity of the Project Committee is an excellent example of successful interaction between the university administration and the student community.

June 24, 2022