Belarusian State University

On February 25, 1919, the Central Executive Committee of the Belorussian SSR resolved to establish the first national university in Belarus. However, the occupation of Minsk by the Polish army delayed these plans, and the university's opening had to be set back to October 30, 1921.[6]

Initially, the university comprised three faculties (Workers, Medicine, and Humanities) that enrolled a total of 1,390 students. The faculty included 14 professors, 49 lecturers and 10 teaching assistants, most of whom were transferred from the universities of Moscow, Kazan and Kiev. In 1922, the Pedagogical Faculty was established. The first class that counted 34 economists and 26 lawyers graduated in 1925. By 1930, the university consisted of six faculties: Workers, Medicine, Pedagogical, National Economy, Law and Soviet Development, Chemical Technology.

In 1941 the university consisted of six Faculties: Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics, Biology, History, Geography, and Languages. There was also a Workers Faculty that provided part-time education to full-time employees of factories and plants, as well as special part-time Polish- and Yiddish-language sections. After Minsk was occupied by Nazi Germany in June 1941, some students and academic staff were evacuated to the east. In May 1943, Belarusian State University was re-opened in the town of Skhodnya, 12 km northwest of Moscow. The university relocated back to Minsk in the summer of 1944 and classes resumed. In 1949, the university was named after Vladimir Lenin to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Byelorussian SSR. In 1975 the Faculty of Radiophysics and Electronics was split off from the Faculty of Physics, and in 1989 the Faculty of Philosophy and Economics was established. The research institutes for physico-chemical problems and nuclear problems were opened in 1978 and 1986, respectively.

After Belarus gained independence from the USSR in 1991, Belarusian State University was officially recognized as a leading establishment of higher education in the new nation. New faculties and institutes were created: the Faculty of International Relations (1995), the State Institute of Management and Social Technologies (2003), the Military Faculty (2003), the St. Methodius and Cyril Theological Institute (2004), the Humanities Faculty (2004); the Institute of Business and Technology Management (2006), the Confucius Institute for Sinology (2007). In the first decade of the 21st century, monuments to a number of Belarusian historical figures - Francysk Skaryna, Mikołaj Hussowczyk, Euphrosyne of Polotsk, Cyril of Turaw, Symon Budny and Wasyl Ciapiński - were erected on campus.

Belarusian State University owns dozens of buildings at various locations within the city of Minsk. The main campus is located in the city center. The second campus of Belarusian State University is located on the Southwestern outskirts of Minsk, just beyond the Minsk Beltway, close to the village of Shchomyslitsa.

Faculty of Physics

Institute of Journalistics, Faculty of Philosophy and Social Science

Internal Yard of the BSU campus

The BSU is an integral complex of academic, research, production, social and cultural, administrative, auxiliary and other units. There are 16 Faculties within the university structure. BSU has 4 Educational Institutes that provide training on undergraduate and post-graduate levels of education. There are a number of Institutes that conduct retraining and advanced training of both youths and adults.[7][8]

• Research Institute of Nuclear Problems
• Research Institute of physics-chemistry problems
• Research Institute of applied physics problems
• Research Institute of applied problems of Mathematics and informatics

The core of the BSU is made of the academic community of teachers, researches, students and postgraduate students. In total more than 10,7% of teaching staff are professors, and holders of Doctor of Science degree.

In 2009 approximately 60% of the secondary school graduates from the country’s regions were accepted for the full-time budget form of education. Vitebsk region — 10%, Mogilev region — 7,3%, Gomel region – 6,4%, Grodno region 9,9%, Brest region — 9,6%, Minsk — 16,4%.

Many students of the University gained successes in national and international scientific competitions and contests. 104 BSU students gained prize places at the Olympiads and competitions in 2007-2009, among them 49 in 2009. On the XVI International Students Mathematics Olympiad (Hungary, July 2009) the BSU team gained 3 gold and 3 silver medals. Bronze medal was gained by the BSU student on the III International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics. On the VI International Economic and Financial Disciplines and Management Aspects Olympiad gained 1st and 2nd place. The International Olympiad for Informatics and Programming (November 2009, Russia) BSU students managed to get a I degree Diploma. On the selection tours of the World Programming Championship BSU team always reaches the finals and gets into the top-20 teams of world.[10]

The BSU offers a variety of educational programs at all levels of education.

The Higher Education Program is organised at the BSU major Faculties and Educational Institutes through 56 specialities and more than 250 specialisations and aimed at preparing specialist with fundamental and special knowledge and skills. Training along the Magister’s Degree Program is conducted through 48 specialities. The PhD Program is aimed to prepare highly qualified researchers holding a candidate of science degree (equivalent of PhD). There is a number of educational establishments which provide students with comprehensive educational training, vocational training, retraining, advanced and refreshment courses.

International students of the BSU

International conference and researchers from Karelian Research Centre of RAS, 2018

In late 1950s BSU became an international university with hundreds of international students. More than 4,000 students from over 102 countries of the world have studied at the BSU during Soviet times until the late 1990s. Today BSU is a leader in the Republic of Belarus in teaching foreign students. It provides training to more than 1800 international students from more than 30 countries of the world.

The Belarusian State University takes active part in many international university networks and associations. The BSU is among the founders of the Eurasian Association of Universities (EAU), It is an individual full member of the European University Association and a national coordinator of the University Network of Central European Initiative (CEI UniNet). The BSU participates in the work of Belarusian UN Association, International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience (IAESTE), Inter-university Centre of Researches and Cooperation in East And South-East Europe (CERCEOS), International Association of Teachers of Russian language as a Foreign (MAPRYL) and others.

Each of the University study buildings are equipped with well-furnished classrooms, seminar rooms and reading lounges. There are 70 computer laboratories and 4 media classrooms.

The BSU Fundamental Library‘s (BSU FL) has 820 readers’ places, 140 workers, 9 home loan departments, 17 departmental and specialised reading rooms. The following digital recourses are available for students and faculty members:

• The Open Public Access Catalog (OPAC) of the Belarusian State University Fundamental Library - It includes 9 bibliographic databases, modified by types of editions (in May 2019 it contains about 1 million records).
• Electronic Document Delivery Service - Gives opportunity to search, order and delivery of electronic copies of documents (articles, chapters, sections, items from magazines and books) that are contained in the funds of BSU FL and also in funds of its partners-libraries.
• Databases. Access to the network (local and utter by licenses) databases is given to users within the BSU network.
• Digitized collections. Educational and research information materials, publications and BSU conferences’ proceedings. Documents are put on the network in accordance with the copyright law acting on the territory of the Republic of Belarus.
• Virtual exhibitions. Information resources that give a possibility to get acquainted with documents from the funds of BSU FL.

According to the international rating - TRANSPARENT RANKING: Institutional Repositories by Google Scholar, BSU Digital Library (9th Edition, April 2020) ranks 3rd in the world among university repositories.

Students Campus in downtown

The BSU has 11 student dormitories. About 65% of housing provided by the university consists of rooms shared by 3-4 persons with a common kitchen and sanitary arrangements.

The BSU has created sports and recreation facilities for its students and staff. Training and health-improving complexes, swimming pools, gymnasiums, sport grounds are available.

• Uładzimier Pičeta (1921–1929)
• Jazep Karanieŭski (1929–1931)
• Ivan Jermakoŭ (1931–1934)
• Anani Dziakaŭ (1934–1935)
• Alaksiej Kučynski (1936–1937)
• Ničypar Bładyka (1937)
• Uładzimier Babraŭnicki (1938)
• Parfion Savicki (1938–1944)
• Uładzimier Tamaševič (1946–1949)
• Ivan Čymburh (1949–1952)
• Kanstancin Łukašoŭ (1952–1957)
• Anton Sieŭčanka (1957–1972)
• Usievaład Sikorski (1972–1978)
• Uładzimier Bieły (1978–1983)
• Leanid Kisialeŭski (1983–1989)
• Fiodar Kapucki (1990–1995)
• Alaksandar Kazulin (1996–2003)
• Vasil Stražaŭ (2003–2008)
• Siarhiej Abłamiejka (2008-2017)
• Andrei Karol (from 2017)

In 2008, the activist Franak Viačorka, member of Partyja BPF, was expelled from the Journalism Faculty of the Belarusian State University and forced into military service.[11] In the same year, Michaił Paškievič, member of the United Civic Party and leader of the party's youth wing, was expelled from the BSU History Faculty for political activity.[12]

In 2009, the BSU Law Faculty has expelled the student Tatsiana Shaputska, a member of the Malady Front, after her participation in the Civil Society Forum of the Eastern Partnership in Brussels[13]

As part of the international sanctions against the regime in Belarus following a crackdown of the opposition following the 2010 Belarusian presidential election, Siarhiej Abłamiejka, at that time rector of the Belarusian State University, was banned from entering the European Union. In its decision, the EU Council accused him of being "responsible for the expulsion of several students from the University because they participated in the demonstrations on 19 December 2010 and in other peaceful demonstrations in 2011." [14] It has been reported that students have been expelled from the Belarusian State University for participating in the protests in 2010 and 2011.

According to reports by human rights organizations, politically motivated expulsions from the Belarusian State University continued also after the EU lifted most of its sanctions against Belarus in 2014.[15]

According to reports by media and human rights organizations, many students of the Belarusian State University are being forced to vote early at elections and referenda, which is considered an essential part of centralized electoral fraud in Belarus. No election or referendum in Belarus has been recognized by the United States, the European Union or the OSCE as free and fair since the mid 1990s.[16][17][18]

In 2020—2021, several university teachers were fired for political reasons.[19][20][21][22] A number of students who participated in the protests or openly expressed their civil position were expelled.[23][24][25][26]

In 2021, 4 previously expelled BSU students were sentenced to 2.5 years of prison for protesting in the university and "discruption of the educational process".[27] All of them were recognized as political prisoners.[28] Several BSU employees were witnesses.[29]

Alena Aladova

Svetlana Alexievich

• Alena Aladava (1907-1986) - Director of the Belarusian National Arts Museum
• Fiodar Fiodaraŭ (1911-1994) - physicist, predicted Imbert–Fiodaraŭ effect
• Ivan Mielež (1921-1976) - writer of fiction and drama
• Aleś Adamovič (1927-1994) - writer and critic
• Anatol Hryckievič (1929-2015) - historian
• Stanisłaŭ Šuškievič (born 1934) - politician and scientist, the first leader and head of state of independent Belarus after the dissolution of the Soviet Union
• Ivan Chigrinov (1934-1996) - writer
• Hienadź Buraŭkin (1936-2016) - diplomat and poet
• Miečysłaŭ Hryb (born 1938) - politician, Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Belarus
• Svetlana Alexievich (born 1948) - journalist and author, winner of Nobel Prize in Literature 2015
• Uładzimier Arłoŭ (born 1953) - historian, writer, politician, and poet
• Barys Tasman (born 1954) - journalist, sports writer
• Iryna Chalip (born 1967) - journalist
• Sunday Adelaja (born 1967) - journalist, pastor
• Volha Čuprys (born 1969) - academic, first female vice rector of this University
• Natalla Piatkievič (born 1972) - politician and stateswoman
• Pavał Sieviaryniec )born 1976) - politician
• Alex Kuzmich, physicist, quantum optics[30]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Belarusian State University.

• Official website