MINSK, 1 October (BelTA) – The Belarusian State University (BSU), as part of the GCRF COMPASS project participants, has been shortlisted for the International Collaboration of the Year nomination of the Times Higher Education (THE) Awards 2021, BelTA learned from the press service of the university.
“It is unofficially called the Oscar in Higher Education in the UK. Being shortlisted is already a sign of the quality of international activities of universities participating in joint projects,” the press service said.
The head university of the project is the University of Kent (UK), and its partners are the University of Cambridge, ADA University (Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy, Azerbaijan), Belarusian State University (Belarus), Tajik National University (Tajikistan) and the University of World Economy and Diplomacy (Uzbekistan).
The COMPASS initiative has been underway since 2018 and aims to develop sustainable educational and research capacity in the face of external influences. The project contributes to improving international academic cooperation by bringing together policymakers and leading scholars from Central Eurasia, the UK, and Europe. Since the launch of COMPASS, its participants have published nine monographs and anthologies, six special issues of peer-reviewed journals, and more than 100 journal articles and analytical reviews. Materials are published in English and Russian and cover topics such as international relations, political science, sociology, migration, sustainability, cultural diplomacy, and regional security. COMPASS participants from Belarusian State University have helped organize major international forums and conferences, schools for young researchers as well as academic programs and disciplines. With the help of the project, a new specialty “Regional Studies” was opened at the History Department of Belarusian State University this year.
THE Awards 2021 comprises a total of 20 nominations. The International Collaboration of the Year category includes five more nominees in addition to the COMPASS project participants. The winners of THE Awards 2021 will be announced at a ceremony in London on 25 November.
THE Awards have been held for 17 years by London's Times Higher magazine in a variety of categories. These include University of the Year, International Collaboration of the Year, Business School of the Year, Outstanding Contribution to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Outstanding Support for Students, and Technological or Digital Innovation of the Year. Previously, the award was established among universities of the UK. This year it was joined by universities of Ireland.
