Azernews.Az

By Peter Tase

Baku Slavic University has embraced the teaching of the core tools of statecraft, as global tensions rise and geopolitical interests are breaking down the old traditions of international politics and rules based international order.

Over the last eighty years, this university has made a lasting impact in driving the national economy forward and adopting curriculum tradition from which local students have greatly benefited.

Today Baku is experiencing significant and top quality results as Azerbaijan has become a driving force of international diplomacy in Eurasia.

As a result of the great leadership of Azerbaijan’s national leader Heydar Aliyev, thanks to his steadfast efforts, the gradual education reforms in Azerbaijan in the early 1990s, at all stages and levels, have already shown their effectiveness and results. The education system of the nation has improved through the guidance of a defined set of goals set within the framework of “National Strategy for the Development of Education in the Republic of Azerbaijan,” which enabled every public servant to look upon this university with pride and encouragement.

The leadership of President Ilham Aliyev and his executive decrees and orders aimed at improving the education system in accordance with the highest standards and the achievement of concrete targets, state programs have adopted scholarship programs that are sending the Azerbaijani youth to prestigious educational institutions abroad. These are the message and instructions for all national higher institutions, in their road towards a more sustainable future.

The main feature of dialectics and philosophy, as well as future plans of Azerbaijan’s education system is to save the experience gained through past decades and to preserve the admirable experiences and academic legacy while respecting a set of the values, traditions, national mentality and the principles of loyalty.

Baku Slavic University, which commemorates its 80th anniversary this year, is committed to these principles and carries out its current and future activities in accordance with these principles.

In the 1940s after the Second World War, Baku Slavic University, which was established and functioned under different names in different periods, has aimed for a long time to prepare professionals of the Russian language and literature teachers, currently it is a center of scientific and educational activities assigned to train high-skilled specialists in Russian language and literature, Slavonic studies, Translation art, International relations and pedagogical specialties.

Equipped with a wise foresight by the great national leader Heydar Aliyev, the profile of Azerbaijani Pedagogical Institute of Russian Language and Literature was expanded with the aspiration to further develop the educational, literary, cultural, political, diplomatic and socio-economic relations with its neighbor country, Russia, the CIS, Eastern, Central and Southern European countries and the Slavic-Greek world. Baku Slavic University, a unique public institution of higher education, was established in 2000. Unlike other Slavic universities in the CIS, Baku Slavic University was established with the initiative of Azerbaijani Government and aims at meeting the educational needs and fulfilling its national strategy of tertiary education objectives.

At a time when the Russian language evokes a great interest in Baku, the University has made the preparation of pedagogical expertise as its top priority, prepares textbooks on the Russian language and literature for secondary schools, remains a scientific and methodological centre for the Russian-language schools and for all of these reasons Baku Slavic University carries out joint projects with leading Universities and scientific and methodological centers in Russia.

Today Baku Slavic University functions as one of the biggest centers of Russian Slavonic philology in the Caucasus and Transcaucasia and it carries out scientific researches in Azerbaijani, Turkish-Slavic and European studies, promotes multicultural studies of the Azerbaijani people in the world, as well as holds international scientific conferences.

Students from all over the world learn the Azerbaijani and the Russian language at Baku Slavic University and have the chance to get the bachelors, masters and postgraduate degrees in different specialties.

Baku Slavic University is an institute of higher education with great scientific and pedagogical potential. There are more than 70 candidates of science, professors, and more than 200 Ph.D. Professors and Assistant Professors. There are plenty of cooperation agreements with foreign universities which make it possible for specialists from other Universities, as well as our teaching staff to get the chance of working here and abroad.

The world’s prominent political leaders, religious and public figures are among the honorary doctors of our University. Lectures delivered by the honorary doctors, especially by political leaders, educational and cultural centers inaugurated in their presence, the attention paid by most of them to relations between their country’s universities and BSU has made a unique impression on its professors and students.

As a continuation to the wonderful and impressive legacy of Academician Kamal Abdullayev, BSU pays a great attention to the accomplishment and realization of the scientific potential of the University, promotion and publication of research projects carried out by department chairs and scientific and research laboratories, regular publication of scientific works, etc.

On September 14, 2010, the Chancellor of the Baku Slavic University (BSU), associate member of ANAS Kamal Abdulla was awarded “Dede Gorgud” prize of the “Dede Gorgud” National Foundation and gold medal. A ceremony was organized in the University on the occasion of the presentation of the awards. Addressing the event, president of the “Dede Gorgud” National Foundation, founder and editor-in-chief of the “World of Azerbaijan” magazine Eldar Ismayilov highlighted the scientific activities of Kamal Abdulla. The same day, Kamal Abdulla`s book entitled “Let`s speak in Azerbaijani language” was published in Bucharest.

The University publishes “Scientific Works” (Language and Literature, Social Science Series), as well as a number of scientific publications prepared jointly with various foreign universities, the magazine “The Russian language and literature”, scientific journal “Tagiyev’s readings,” thematic and high school yearbooks, various dictionaries and reference books, encyclopedias, textbooks and monographs. It is not a coincidence that the scientific research schools at the University, formed during the period of the Former Soviet Union have fulfilled their mission and have expanded the scope of research today. Indeed, there are honorable successors of these scientific schools including professors Mehmet Tagiyev and Ali Huseynov with their work on lexicography and phraseology; literary relations and investigation founded by professors Michayil Rafili, Murtuz Sadikhov, Habib Babayev, pedagogical and methodological departments directed and formed by professors Leila Vakilova, Bashir Ahmadov, Chingiz Badalov; Translation and Azerbaijani studies and multiculturalism departments, established during the modern development stage and due to efforts and the effective initiative of Honorable Academician Kamal Abdulla; Dostoevsky’s studies, carried out by Prof. Mammad Qojayev and many others.

Baku Slavic University carries out preparation of experts for the unique majors in bachelors, masters and postgraduate degrees. Students and professionals from more than 15 countries get their education in our campus. The university focuses on the implementation of the concept of continuous education and as a result the University involves the School and Lyceum Complex under Baku Slavic University, where students get elementary, secondary and higher education. The Department of Additional Education, which includes professional development, retraining and probation, is another effective way to strengthen the potential of its future experts. The Graduate Dissertation board carries out training of young and new scientific and scientific-pedagogical researchers in the Russian language and literature, literary theory, comparative linguistics and the like.

The students of our University, Eldar Gasimov and Aysel Teymurzadeh, who graduated from the School and Lyceum Complex under Baku Slavic University, represented Azerbaijan at the “Eurovision” song contest. Students from philological faculty, have collected interesting samples of folklore during their expeditions in Ivanovka village of Ismayilli Region, populated by the Russian population, and they have published a book volume of fascinating folklore samples named: “Russian folklore of Azerbaijan.”

The University marks its 80th anniversary with great expectations for the future. This anniversary is not only for the professors and students, but also for local and foreign friends of BSU, graduates, for everyone who cooperates with this prestigious institution, incoming students and their parents.

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Peter Tase is a freelance writer and journalist of International Relations, Latin American and Southern Caucasus current affairs. He is the author of America's first book published on the historical and archeological treasures of the Autonomous Republic of Nakhchivan (Republic of Azerbaijan); has authored and published four books on the Foreign Policy and current economic – political events of the Government of Azerbaijan. Tase has written about International Relations for Eurasia Review Journal since June 2012.