MIT and Russia to build research university
MIT and Russia to build research university
On Oct 26, MIT signed an agreement with Russia’s Skolkovo Foundation, marking the beginning of a three-year endeavor to develop a graduate research university, the Skolkovo Institute of Technology (SkTech, pronounced S-K-Tech). SkTech is located in Skolkovo, a region near Moscow that has been described as Russia’s future Silicon Valley. The agreement was signed by MIT President Susan J. Hockfield, Skolkovo Foundation President Viktor Vekselberg, and SkTech founding President Edward F. Crawley ’76, a Course 16 Professor.
“MIT and SkTech, working together, aim to create a new model for graduate education and research in science and technology,” said Hockfield in an MIT News Office press release.
SkTech will adopt an inter-disciplinary approach to academics and research, focusing on a wide-range of fields, including energy, biomedical research, information science, space science and nuclear science. The Institute also plans to open a Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Students, faculty, and researchers will work with members from other Russian and overseas universities.
The Institute, which is scheduled to open in 2014, will employ about 200 faculty members and enroll an inaugural class of 1,200 graduate students and 300 postgraduate students.
—Bruno B. F. Faviero