Education is guarantee of progress

The Republic of Bashkortostan possesses high scientific and technical potential.

The educational system of the republic is one of the largest in the Russian Federation by quantity of educational institutions and students trained in them. There are 5400 educational institutions in the republic where 900 students study and about 190 thousand teachers work.

“Education is considered one of four top priority national projects, approved by the Russian President Vladimir Putin. The project is being realized for the third year already. For three years of the project’s work, about 40% of republican schools received at least one set of modern educational equipment and about 30% of rural schools were supplied with school buses. 7,2% of general education institutions and 3,5% of professional education institutions received funds to develop their innovation programs, 1,2% of school teachers got financial incentives. All form-masters received additional monthly payments and all republican schools were supplied with access to the internet”.

The following target-oriented programs are developed in the republic: Education development program in 2004-2008, “Formation of a new citizen of Bashkortostan in 2002-2010”, “Informatization of educational system RB and electronic communication  development of republican education in 2002-2006”, “The program for school farms development at rural professional colleges and increasing of their role in qualified workers training for agricultural complex RB in 2006-2010”, “Computerization of education system RB in 2006-2010”, “Development of rural schools RB in 2006-2008” (plus sub-programs “School bus” and “Erection of new schools to replace wrecking ones”, “Fire safety in educational institutions RB in 2006-2010”. Besides, the presidential program “Children RB” in 2006-2010 was also approved.

Every year more than 40 new schools open their doors in the republic. The educational sphere of Bashkortostan is always in the focus of attention of the republican leadership. The training process is organized in six languages at republican educational institutions, 14 native languages are studied as a school subject: Bashkir, Russian, Tatar, Chuvash, Mari, Udmurt, Mordvinian, German, Ukrainian, Byelorussian, Jewish, Lettish, Polish and Armenian.

The state program for preservation, study and development of languages of Bashkortostan peoples in 2006-2010 and the concept of national education and principles of native languages studying in Bashkortostan are under realization.

The opening of 19 national Sunday schools became the result of searching for a new model of a national-oriented education institution in the multinational republic. Here pupils have a chance to study their national culture and native language along with ordinary general education programs.

Bashkortostan is one of few regions of the Russian Federation, where in accordance with the regional legislation general educational institutions are supplied with free-of-charge textbooks. Besides, new textbooks for history and culture RB, Bashkir, Russian and Tatar languages, fine arts and music were issued here. The most talented pupils and students take part in international education projects, such as “Associated UNESCO Schools”.

Six schools from 190, having UNESCO Paris certificates and functioning in the territory of the Russian Federation, are located in Bashkortostan. Two schools have Russian UNESCO certificates. 20 schools of Ufa, Sterlitamak, Sibay, Utchaly and Blagoveshensk successfully work in the project “Associated UNESCO Schools” and actively participate in such projects as “Education for Everybody”, “World Cultural Heritage” and “The Great River Volga Way”.

At schools NN5, 21, the private school “Alpha” and some other schools the UNESCO subsidiaries were opened. More than 500 pupils and students RB passed training courses there. They are our future international leaders, people to be busy with peace-making activity at corresponding subdivisions at republican and Russian levels and at the level of UNESCO. The names of the most talented activists are included into the world database and may be claimed by international organizations at any time.

12 state self-dependent higher education institutions and 17 divisions of state education institutions of Moscow, Samara, Chelyabinsk, Orenburg and Yekaterinburg provide training of specialists with higher professional education. Specialists graduate from them in about 48 courses and 228 trades and professions.

The non-state sector of higher professional education includes five self-dependent institutions and eight regional subdivisions. Education there is mainly of economical social profile.

International activity and cooperation between republican universities and foreign educational institutions and scientific centres is also develops actively.

Bashkir universities take part in international conferences, symposiums and seminars, in educational and scientific programs. Professors and teachers from Bashkir universities often give lectures at leading foreign universities. Many Bashkir students study abroad and republican universities welcome foreign students for education.

International cooperation of Bashkortostan in the sphere of higher professional education and science is provided both through inter-governmental programs, combining federal regulation, financing and coordination, and by direct contracts.

The Bashkir State University actively participates in the international integration activity in the sphere of education and science. The Bashkir State University concluded more than 20 contracts on cooperation with foreign universities and centres where annually up to 100 students and over 60 teachers undergo training.

The Ufa State Aviation Technical University (UGATU) has direct contractual relations with leading universities of France, China, Germany, the USA and Finland, successfully conducting scientific investigations with the EU and the USA companies. The university was the initiator of foundation of the Association of Universities RB to establish partnership relations with German universities. In January of the current year the presentation of the «supercomputer», the most productive for today computing IBM cluster in the territory of Russia and the CIS, based on IBM blade-servers, took place at the Ufa State Aviation Technical University. This machine will be used in the innovation program “Computer modelling using computer technologies” and in teaching other subjects, connected with IT, parallel programming and computer modelling.

Development of higher professional education in the Republic of Bashkortostan is conducted considering general guidelines of Bologna process: two-level educational system “Bachelor’s program-Master’s program”, the system of credits. It was started to give out European-standard applications for diplomas in several universities. On some directions of baccalaureate universities carry out educational programs jointly developed with foreign partners.

Science in the Republic of Bashkortostan

Republic of Bashkortostan — is an important regional science centre of the country.

State scientific and technical programs, programs of international scientific cooperation are financed from the republican budget. For 2007, expenses for scientific researches and elaborations made more than 2 billion roubles. In Bashkortostan the State awards in the field of science and technology, the State republican youth awards in science and technology are founded. Since 2007, Bashkortostan Republic grants are handed over to young scientists and youth scientific collectives.

About 60 scientific organizations are active in Bashkortostan.

Number of scientific personnel makes about 8 thousand people.

Preparation of scientific manpower is carried out by 18 postgraduate courses (11 higher educational institutions and 7 scientific organizations) and 7 doctoral courses. The centres to prepare young scientists are the Bashkir State University, the Bashkir State Medical University, the Ufa State Oil Technical University and Ufa State Aviation Technical University. Among scientific organizations the leading part is occupied by the Ufa centre of science of the Russian Academy of Science and Republic Bashkortostan Academy of Science.

More than 200 doctors and 800 candidates of science work in scientific organizations. A great share of doctors and candidates is in such branches of science, as mathematics (70 % of all researchers in the given branch), philology (66,7 %), biology (65,7 %), history, chemistry, physics (50 %).

Main directions of scientific research are mathematics, physics, mechanics, the molecular biology, microbiology, petrochemistry and chemistry of polymers. Success of Bashkortostan scientists in the field of ophthalmology and eye microsurgery is considerable. Two ophthalmology centres, having achieved the world level in their theoretical research and practice function in Ufa.

Nine scientific schools are recognised as leaders in the country and are awarded grants of the President of the Russian Federation. And a number of scientists of aviation and oil universities became winners of the award of the Government of Russia in the field of science and technology.

The world recognition was received by unique archeological finds of the Bashkir scientists among which a gold collection of Sarmatian epoch from Filippovskiy barrows is ranked high. The large-scale international and Russian congresses and forums, competitions of young scientists are annually spent in the republic.

Opening of the UNESCO department at the Bashkir State University became a big event in the scientific life of the republic. Its employees promote formation in the society a culture of peace, mutual understanding and civil consent, penetration of UNESCO ideas into the student’s environment. On the basis of the department the International centre of UNESCO was created opening wide prospects for inclusion of the leading university of the republic in the UNESCO Program of University Cooperation.

In 2006, delegations of the UNESCO Committee of Bashkortostan represented Russia at the International youth conference on preservation of the environment in Malaysia, participated in the International conference on development of children’s club movement in Greece.

It is done much for implementing of scientific achievements into production and economy. In the republic the law «On innovative activity in Bashkortostan Republic» operates, the Fund of assistance to venture investments development in volume of 200 million roubles is created. The fund should provide stimulation of innovative projects, high technology business, and formation of a competitive innovative infrastructure in the republic. One of major results of scientific research and elaborations was creation of the advanced industrial technologies based on microelectronics. Since 2000, it has been created more than 50 advanced industrial technologies.

Inventive scientific activity of the leading republican universities makes a considerable contribution to the further development of science.