Tallinn University restricts admission of Russian and Belarusian students for the next academic year

The Senate of Tallinn University decided at its 4 April session that citizens of Russia and Belarus who do not have a residence permit or long-term visa of a European Union member state, who do not study in Estonia or who do not have international protection in Estonia, cannot apply for Tallinn University for the upcoming academic year.

Tallinn University's Terra building

The question of admission of Russian and Belarusian students led to a wide discussion at the university, and the decision to restrict admission was taken by a 2/3 majority of the voters.

The Senate found that in the current situation, the university aims to support Ukrainian students first and foremost. Rector Tõnu Viik said that the university exempted all current Ukrainian students from tuition fees this spring semester. "We also plan to offer tuition-free studies for our Ukrainian students throughout the upcoming academic year," said Viik.

When deciding whether to restrict the admission of Belarusian and Russian citizens or not, the members of the Senate considered topics such as academic freedom and collective responsibility. The Senate found that the positive effects of the temporary restraint decision outweighed the negative ones. "Although I have expressed the opposite opinion on this question myself, the decision of the Senate is the law of Tallinn University," said Rector Tõnu Viik.

The decision of the Senate also expresses support to the previous decisions of other Estonian universities to temporarily restrict the admission of Russian and Belarusian students.

In order to find additional support for Tallinn University’s Ukrainian students, the university’s Student Union opened a support fund. The purpose of the fund is to provide support to Ukrainian students to cover living expenses. To support Ukrainian students, students collect donations on the following account numbers:

  • SEB, Tallinn University Student Union, EE431010011911416225;
  • Swedbank, Tallinn University Student Union, EE282200221026097397.