Extracurricular Activities at Higher School of Economics

Extracurricular students’ activities support in

State University – Higher School of Economics

Tatiana ZakharovaVice-rector proxy on student extracurricular activites management

What is it all about?

Why do we do it?Extracurricular students’ activities are very

important due to the following:1. Students are an unexсludable and fully

legitimate part of out university’s community. They deserve no less attention than anyone else in the university.

2. Students achieve practical experience while participating in activities that are interesting to them.

3. Students are engaged in useful and challenging activities instead of drug and alcohol abuse (which is a big risk in Russia) or falling prey to religious or political sects.

Who is involved?

Work of Department for students’ extracurricular activities management

1. Support for students’ initiatives

Support for students’ initiatives

Sources of initiatives

The initiatives may come from:

- the students, or

- the Department itself.

Our department supports the initiatives that students exhibit.

There are initiatives coming from the department, that are put into being by students’ hands.

Performers of initiatives

Extracurricular work is alwaysa partnership.

Charity actions and projects aimed at social awareness

Donorship initiative

“Mi Vmeste”camp

Clown doctorproject

Student self-administration supportThere are 18 facultees in HSE.

Many of them have their own student councils.

The councils’ primary tasks are to: - protect the students’ rights; - improve the dialogue between the students and the

facultees’ administrations; - develop and nourish the facultees’ and university’s

corporate culture and traditions.

Our Department supports student councils in all aspects at all times.

Student organizations support

There are more than 30 student organizations in HSE.

Our department supports the projects that they nurture.

A special annual award has been set up to promote the best projects —

“The Cast Iron Egg”

Areas of student organizations' efforts

Student media support

1. “Vorona” magazine (“Vorona” is “crow” in Russian,

the mascot of HSE)

2. Newspaper “Vyshka”(“Vyshka” is the nick name of

Vysshaya Shkola Economiki)

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2. Students’ personal aid

Students’ personal aid

The center for psychological counseling does:

— personal counceling for students

— educational project “Personal development school”

Psychological help

Acclimatization helpThe Training center performs: — Acclimatizaion training for

freshmen. — Various skill training for

students.

Scientific pursuits facilitation

We provide organizational and IT support for the annual contest of students’ scientific papers, held in HSE for its students and students from other universities.

We carry out summer schools, including international ones (The annual “Baltic Practice”, summer school of economics, Summer Academy: The Art of Startup, to name a few)

We organize various student scientific conferences, including cross-university ones.

“Baltic Practice” summerschool

Summer Academy“The Art of Startup”

Student conference

Personal career start facilitation

This is mostly the task of Center for Career Development, but sometimes we cooperate.

Carreer-guidance and self-presentation trainings are sometimes conducted collaboratively by our Department and Center for Career Development.

Culture Center

Culture centerClassic fine arts

TheatreClassic musicChoreographyArt studio

Participation in external contests and festivals: FESTOS International choir music contest Theatrical festival “She, who flies the waves” Creative festival “Sails of Hope” Fortepiano music festival

Hobby clubsHistorical fencing clubHistorical dancing club

Theatre

Historical fencing club

Historical dancing club

Choir “Force Major”

Center of Creative Studios

Contemporary youth culture– digital visual art and design– indy music (rock, punk, folk, electronic)

Carries out two festivals ArtVyshka MuzVyshka

MuzVyshka Festival

3. Development of the University’s

corporate culture

Development of the University’s corporate culture

Freshman’s day

A celebration anda spectacular performance prepared to welcome the new generation of students.

HSE BirthdayCelebration is held on 27-th of November each year.

University always gets congratulations from the top leaders of Russian government including Prime-minister and ministers of Trade and Finance.

Stud’in’Day: Students’ Day

Awards

Golden Vyshka — from tutors to students and tutors.

The Cast Iron Egg — from students to students.

Respectum — from students to tutors.

Golden Vyshka Award

Golden Vyshka Award

Presented annualy to tutors, students and employees of HSE.

Winners are judged upon by a committee of professors in ordinary.

Golden Vyshka Award

6 nominations:

• academic achievement

• teaching achievement

• scientific achievement

• student initiative

• contribution to HSE development

• graduate’s success

The Cast Iron Egg Award

The Cast Iron Egg AwardThere are so many

student organizations in HSE and their activities and projects are so diverse, that a special award has been established some 7 or 6 years ago, to promote the best ones.

The Cast Iron Egg AwardThe award is presented to

students and student organizations.

The winners are determined through voting by students, held for a week all across the University.

This year there are 8 nominations, including:

1. Personal extracurricular achievements

2. Personal sport achievements3. Best Sport & Health project4. Best culture and entertainment

project 5. Best social awareness project6. Best specialized project 7. Best creative project8. Establishment or support of the

best information source

The Cast Iron Egg Award

Respectum Award

Respectum AwardRespectum is awarded

in spring.

It is presented to the tutors, who were voted to be the favourite tutors of the faculties by the students of the respective faculties.

4. Efforts on pedagogic and

health-improving activities

Efforts on pedagogic and health-improving activities

Health Day

Extreme Sports Club

5. Theoretical aid to HSE employees engaging students

in extracurricular contexts

Theoretical aid

There are other employees but ours that engage in extracurricular work with students on a day to day basis– Curators– Housemasters at hostels

Our Department provides them with:– Trainings– Whitepapers on student engagement– Educational courses

The process of acclimatization and

incorporation of freshmen into extracurricular student

activities

The process itself

1. Freshman’s day

A big celebration held just before the 1-st of September.

The Great Concert Hall of Russian Academy of Sciences is the traditional venue.

For freshmen it is the first acquaintance with the student organizations.

The freshmen fill in the questionnaires for the Core Leaders School enrollment.

Before the performance starts, the exhibition of student organizations is held.

For them it is an opportunity to present themselves.

2. Acclimatization trainings

Are carried out on all of the faculties for all volunteering freshmen. Can also be carried out for other students.

Freshmen are told how to enjoy the stay at university and are taught the ways for most effective studying.

The trainings are concluded by a brief presentation of opportunities for extracurricular activities.

3. Core Leaders School

Core Leaders SchoolFreshmen are selected

based on the questionnaires they filled at Freshman’s Day

They are personally interviewed.

Most interesting students are hand-picked.

They are taken to some country holiday center and are engaged in trainings, games and simulation exercises.

4. Incorporation into extracurricular activities

Throughout all the first year of education the freshmen are headhunted and recruited by

1. Student organizations.2. Student councils.3. Project initiative groups.4. Creative and hobby clubs.

Summary and

some questions

SummaryHSE possesses an established corporate culture and

a set of traditions.

Their continuity and stability are ensured by continuous and thoughtful work with every next generation of student activists.

The methods of extracurricular work are continuously improved. Each year the number of finished projects steadily increases.

The budgets allocated for student projects by the University are growing from year to year.

This makes us feel confident and optimistic about our University’s future.

Questions to colleaguesIs there an established process of

collaboration with student activists in your university?

If there is, then what are your ways?

Why do you do this? What goals are kept in mind?

More questions

What non-symbolic (not awards and not badges of honour) methods of motivation for student activity are you employing?

Some analogue for ECTS credits maybe? (They’re called “opintopiste” here, are they?)

Or maybe some special scholarships?

Even more questions

Is there a process of psychological support for the students?

Do you have any acclimatization measures for the freshmen?

Do you have curators for the groups of students based on year when they were enlisted on a faculty?

Well, that’s it. Thank you for the discussion.

tzakharova@hse.ruhttp://tr.im/StudLifeHSE

http://tr.im/UvrsHSE