The significance of statistics in today’s digital age has reached a new level. Many decisions at government and business levels are based on data analysis. However, there is a mixed perception of official statistics, which negatively affects trust in public policies. The heads of BRICS statistical agencies discussed this issue and ways to address it at a forum in Kazan, where a representative from HSE University also participated in the event.

Alexandra Kislyonkova, from Kazakhstan, graduated from HSE University in St Petersburg. After completing her bachelor's, Alexandra pursued a master’s at HSE University in Moscow. Alexandra is currently a PhD student at the University of California, Merced. We asked Alexandra about her studies at HSE University, her scientific interests, the subject of her dissertation, and... how to marry an HSE student!

A team of scientists, including researchers from the HSE Centre for Language and Brain, examined specific aspects of auditory perception in children with autism. The scientists observed atypical alpha rhythm activity both during sound perception and at rest. Over time, these abnormalities can result in language difficulties. The study findings have been published in Brain Structure and Function.

On October 25-26, the Fall into ML Conference was held in Moscow, organised by the AI and Digital Science Institute of the HSE Faculty of Computer Science in collaboration with the AI Research Centre and with support from the title partner, Sber. Over the course of two days, leading experts in artificial intelligence discussed prospects for advancing fundamental AI technologies.

On December 14–15, 2024, the CG RAVE conference will gather top professionals in the com-puter graphics (CG) industry for the fourth time at its venues. This event is co-organised by the HSE Art and Design School. This year’s event features talks by top industry experts, an HR zone with job offers from leading companies, an interactive section for hands-on learning experiences, and networking opportunities.

The awards ceremony for the international Yandex ML Prize was held in Moscow. This year, all three winners in the ‘ML Educators’ category were HSE faculty members—Evgeny Sokolov, Associate Professor and Head of the Big Data and Information Retrieval School, Anton Konushin, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Computer Science, and Aleksei Shpilman, Associate Professor at the Department of Informatics at HSE’s St Petersburg School of Physics, Mathematics, and Computer Science.

The steadily growing interest in studying at HSE University, particularly among applicants from CIS and Asian countries, reflects the high quality of Russian education. This year, as part of a separate admissions process for international applicants, 2,267 students were enrolled across all HSE University's campuses for the 2024/25 academic year, representing a 14% increase compared to last year.

Every semester, 21 countries and 52 universities open their doors to students from HSE University as part of the student international mobility programme. In the fall semester of 2024, Sofya Malyukova, a third-year student of the bachelor's programme ‘Foreign Languages and Intercultural Communication’, went to study at Ca' Foscari University (Venice, Italy) through the student mobility programme.

In October, the HSE Preparatory Year programme held orientation sessions for its newcomers. Why should one study Russian? What is the admission process like at HSE University? The HSE News Service discussed these and other questions with Faizullah from Afghanistan, Sechang from South Korea, and Faith from Zambia—all newly enrolled students of the Prep Year.