HSE Open House for prospective students

Among the Top 10 Russian universities, HSE today employs about 7,000 lecturers and researchers, teaches 35,000 students, and has an alumni community that has grown to approximately 70,000 since its foundation in 1992. HSE Day is the only day of the year when we bring together students, alumni, instructors and friends of the university with the 46 bachelor’s and 121 master’s programmes taught at the Moscow campus on display. This is when participants can catch a glimpse of HSE student life, learn about all aspects of life at the university, and have some fun in the park. HSE Day is a place where you can talk to students and graduates or share your experiences, feel like you are part of a big university family, and choose a programme for potential study in the coming year.

HSE StudLife Student Organizations Alley

HSE boasts a dynamic and diverse extracurricular life, which is created by members of 150 different student associations. They stage professional performances at theatres, play in an orchestra, sing in a choir, and organize major HSE events. They also promote ‘green thinking’ and do charity work, engage in debates and academic competitions, and travel and exercise together. They maintain Russian’s most extensive collection of student publications and hold real elections every year. Various student organizations will have information for HSE Day participants at the Student Organizations Alley #HseStudLife. Here you can also look forward to different interactive games and a rich programme prepared by HSE students themselves. The Alley will also include an HSECoin corner, where you can learn about the HSE crowdfunding platform and donate your HSECoins to your favourite student projects.

HSE StudLife Lounge

HSE StudLife Lounge is an activity lounge hosted by HSE student organizations, with a lecture centre, creative and game areas, as well as workshops by students.

Freshmen Quest (in English)

Freshmen Quest is a thrilling game, which will help you learn everything about HSE and more. The quest aims to prepare first-year students for future studies. Those who solve the tasks at the 20 different locations will immerse in student life and gain useful skills for first-year studies. Participants who cover at least 15 of the locations and complete the tasks will receive special prizes. To complete the quest, you can download a special HSE Day app on AppStore or Google Play. A menu option contains all the information on the quest. For those who are more old school, a printed version of the map will be available at the information desk and in the prize tent.

HSE Lyceum (in Russian)

For the traditional lyceum student initiation ceremony, heartfelt greetings from the administration, questions and answers on admissions and studies — come learn about HSE Lyceum on Pushkinskaya Naberezhnaya. This year, the Lyceum has its own space with dancing, guitar music, and a unique atmosphere for those in the upper school years.

PhD Party by the Faculty of Economic Sciences (in Russian)

The HSE Faculty of Economic Sciences invites everyone who is thinking about applying for a PhD programme in economics to this event. Here, representatives of the Faculty of Economic Sciences and the Doctoral School of Economics will talk to students, applicants and anyone interested in PhD programmes in economics not only in Russia but in other countries as well.

Venue: Rediscovering Russia Lawn

Time: 4pm – 5pm

The Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience invites everyone to participate in visual experiments with an eye tracker – a device that detects eye positioning and movement during visual stimuli perception – and learn what computer brain is and how it works.

Students and staff from the Faculty of Physics will be happy to demonstrate real physics experiments and explain them from a scientific perspective. Second-year undergraduate students who won prizes in the 2017 National Physics Competition will demonstrate experiments with light polarization. They will show how you can light a cold fructose solution with a laser and obtain a non-typical light distribution inside a vessel. Researchers from the RAS Institute for Physical Problems will use liquid nitrogen to demonstrate the unexpected behaviour of some everyday objects when they are chilled.

‘Shukhov Lab’, the Laboratory for Experimental Urban Design, will talk about new trends in urban planning. Guests at HSE Day will be able to view a prototype of a sustainable residential complex created by the teachers and students of the Master's programme ‘Prototyping Future Cities’. The model was presented at the Moscow Urban Forum in July.

The prototype of a sustainable residential complex demonstrates how to maximise functionality, allocate resources and create urban communities. Using wood and alternative energy sources, harmful emissions are reduced along the entire process, from the early stages of production to the opening of the building. Using augmented reality, the model provides a detailed view of a residential complex of the future.

The model was developed in the Shukhov Lab at HSE’s Vysokovsky Graduate School of Urbanism by students of the master's programme ‘Prototyping Future Cities’. The project was supervised by Vicente Guallart, Elena Mitrofanova and Ivan Mitrofanov.

The HSE Laboratory of the School of Psychology invites you to the world of optical illusion. Try on upside down goggles and take part in ‘Boshe Chair’ and ‘Margaret Thatcher Illusions’ experiments. This experiment demonstrates one of the key mechanisms used by our brain to process information on faces.

MIEM HSE Laboratories have prepared two zones for the day. The virtual and augmented reality zones will present projects by students of the Laboratory of 3D Imaging and Computer Graphics. Here you can immerse yourself into virtual worlds with VR glasses and headsets, and feel the persistence of human vision with pseudo holographic POV displays. In the zone of additive technology and prototyping, you can learn how a 3D printer works both in theory and practically. You can get a 3D-printed souvenir, as well as invent and create your own object with a 3D pen.

Lectures by HSE professors

University professors will deliver lectures on the cutting-edge achievements that future science and technology will bring.

English-language lectures - HSE Open Talks

Each year HSE welcomes new colleagues – Ph.D. holders from the world’s best universities – who join the university through the international recruiting programme. Scholars from around the world representing a range of academic disciplines will discuss their research and speak with members of the public.

14:00 – 14:30 Lecture "The last reform from above. Perestroika, Uzbekistan and the crisis of the Soviet periphery"

Lecturer – Riccardo Mario Cucciolla, Research Fellow at the International Centre for the History and Sociology of World War II and Its Consequences

14:30 – 15:00 Lecture "Epochs and Aeons in Literature"

Lecturer – Mark Taylor, Assistant Professor at the School of Philology

15:00 – 15:30 Lecture " Sustainability in the public sector"

Lecturer – Tim Jaekel, Assistant Professor at the School of Public Administration

15:30 – 16:00 Lecture "The crisis and urban struggle in Brazil: the rise of the Landless Workers’ Movement"

Lecturer – Victor Albert, Assistant Professor at the Public Policy Department

16:00 – 16:30 Lecture "Machine Bias: mathematical models against minorities, races, protected groups, genders"

Lecturer – Attila Kertesz-Farkas, Assistant Professor at the School of Data Analysis and Artificial Intelligence

16:30 – 17:00 Lecture "Not in my backyard! Neighborhood activities and urban governance"

Lecturer – Christian Frohlich, Assistant Professor at the School of Sociology

17:00 – 17:30 Lecture "Saving Socrates from Plato"

Lecturer – Aaron Wendland, Assistant Professor at the School of Philosophy

17:30 – 18:00 Lecture "Reverse-engineering the human brain"

Lecturer – Joe  MacInnes, Assistant Professor at the School of Psychology

14:00–15:00 Discussion on education

HSE Day’s opening discussion will focus on the development and integration of education programs in higher education institutions launched within the university’s collaborations with various partners.

The speakers, each of whom can boast a vast experience of working with partners from diverse spheres of business, culture, and science, will case study successful examples of the university’s collaboration with market players in the field of education. The speakers will be announced later.

The session will be moderated by Maria Polnikova, Manager of Academic Programs at Garage Museum of Contemporary Art.

17:00–18:00 Discussion on science

It has become a common idea recently that the labor market should generate requests for the advancement of certain training profiles, which raises a number of issues, however, associated with the organization of scientific research in today’s universities, leading to the question of a balance between external expert inquiry and fundamental science as a long-term phenomenon. The speakers will share their experience of integrating and realizing research projects using universities as platforms.

The speakers will be announced later.

The session will be moderated by Maria Polnikova, Manager of Academic Programs at Garage Museum of Contemporary Art.

14:30 - 15:00 The Whole World at HSE: Parade of Nationalities

Meeting people from different cultures helps you gain new knowledge and perspectives, and gives you a new understanding of yourself and the modern world, a world where territorial boundaries and your nationality are not barriers to friendly and professional collaboration and where language barriers are lifted thanks to top-notch education systems. You will be able to get a sense of how global and international HSE has become during its flag parade, where representatives of more than 20 nationalities will walk with their flags around Gorky Park, which is its own sort of mecca for international tourists. Rap Battle by International Admissions and Vyshka Rhymes will complete the parade.

14:00 - 19:00 Russian Tea Room

Russian teatime traditions may not be as old as Chinese customs, but they are characterized by hospitality and cheerfulness. We invite all guests of HSE Day, especially our foreign colleagues and international students, to attend the Russian tea ceremony, a unique part of national culture.

Russian tea culture dates back to Russian nobles and merchants and will be demonstrated at the ceremony, among other things, through the whistling of the iconic samovar and the delicious taste of cakes and cracknels. The event will focus on international communication through trivia and games dedicated to the Russian language and our rich culture. Russian participants will be able to show their hospitality and cheerfulness, tell guests about local traditions and share some useful practical knowledge.

14:00 - 19:00 HSE Chamber of Nationalities

The HSE Chamber of Nationalities is a student organization that has been working on various issues for the last five years to achieve a constructive, intercultural dialogue and forge positive relationships among the different nationalities at the Higher School of Economics.

14:00 - 19:00 HSE International Student Association

International Street is a place where you can communicate with people from different cultures, try their national dishes, and take part in quests and quizzes on different cultures.

The Whole World at HSE Lounge

14:00 – 14:30 HSE International Talk on Self-independence (in English). How to start living in a new environment and effectively self-studying.

14:30 – 15:00 HSE Workshop on How to speak like a Brazilian (in English). We invite you to get a “taste” of Brazilian soul through learning Portugese and listening to gripping facts.

15:00  – 16:00 Here, from 3pm to 4pm, staff from the HSE eLearning Office will speak about what eLearning is, how it works at HSE, what eLearning platforms exist, and what HSE courses they offer today. People who have passed over eight online courses by HSE will be invited as guest speakers. They will share their experiences of how they used the knowledge they gained, how to choose a course, and challenges they experienced studying online, after which they will take questions from the audience. As a bonus, you’ll be able to take part in a quiz, where the winner will be able to take any of HSE’s online courses with a certificate for free.

16.30 – 17.00 HSE International Talk: “How to communicate with someone you only know by stereotypes” (in English). In the world of globalization it is impossible to stay away from other cultures. The question is “How to get to know the culture and not to be confused by stereotypes?”

17.00 – 17.30 HSE Workshop (in English): “Salsa Rhythms: let's spice it up!”. Join the Dance class to learn the basics!

The Whole World at HSE Stage

15:00 – 15:20 HSE Rap Battle — the first Rap Battle for international students at HSE. Virtually a historic event, it can’t be missed.

15:30 – 19:00 Ethnic dances. Ethnic dances from various cultures in the centre of Moscow? Yes! International students (and others too) will set the main festival’s venue on fire!

14:00 – 19:00 Study Abroad

Do you dream about studying abroad, but don’t know where to start? The International Student Mobility unit invites you to attend a series of information sessions with international students from partner universities and graduates of HSE exchange programmes. You’ll learn about the opportunities for HSE students and selection criteria and get all the information first-hand. A detailed schedule of information sessions will be available on the website.

14:00 – 19:00 HSE International Admissions (Education Advisory Centre)

The HSE International Admissions venue has been organized specially for international applicants or students of Russian universities who would like to study at HSE. Staff from the HSE Consulting Centre will tell you not only about opportunities to get merit-based scholarships but also about students’ life. You will be able to choose the best programme that fits you. Check out why it is cool to be an international student at HSE!

We invite you to participate in “Welcome to HSE” Short Quest with opportunity to win free tickets to Music Concert in Gorky Park! Winners will be announced at 6pm at our booth.  

Venue: Green School at Gorky Park

Start time - 15:00.

Ebru painting workshop

In some countries, this art is referred to as ‘dancing paints’. This is the one-of-a-kind technique of painting on water, which results in unique pictures. Creating two similar paintings is impossible!

3D modeling

Those who are into modern technology are invited to a workshop on 3D modeling with 3D pens. It’s not just drawing- it’s an opportunity to create a real 3D object by skillfully moving your hands in the air. This workshop combines creativity and technology- it’s both art and modeling.

Sculpture workshop

At this workshop, you’ll be able to mold an HSE crow, the university mascot, out of clay. And after that, your creature will be put in the kiln and coated with enamel, and you’ll have it as a keepsake of HSE Day 2018.

Carpentry workshop

Children will be able to make interesting and functional wooden objects under the teacher’s supervision in a professionally equipped workshop. Please note that this creative process requires focus and time. We kindly ask you to register in advance.

Pottery workshop

At this pottery workshop, you’ll have a unique opportunity to learn to work with a potter’s wheelPreliminary registration is required.

Cooking workshop

In a functional and spacious kitchen, budding cooks will have an opportunity to create delicious meals following simple recipes, and then treat their families and friends.

Bag decorating workshop

In order to carry all your handmade items home, take part in a bag decorating workshop. You’ll be able to apply various decoration techniques to create a stylish and unique bag.

Workshops for young children

For children 4 years and up, we offer clay modeling classes. Together with mums and dads, the children will create small toys, and maybe even small towns. The little artists will create, and the parents can sit back and enjoy their children’s imagination.

Racing on exercise bikes

VR car races

Those who love technology, speed and driving, can participate in Formula 1 races and feel like a racing car driver, taking on the head-spinning curves of the most popular race tracks. Those who like tough competition can race on exercise bikes.

For those seeking active leisure, there will be a children’s entertainment programme with fairy-tale characters, active games and outdoor competitions.

To register for Science Battles 2018, please follow the link.

Place: Pioner open-air cinema at Gorky Park.

Start time: 2:00pm.

HARD 005: SUB-SUB-CILTURE. Fashion show by HSE Art and Design School

At HSE Day, the HSE Art and Design School will present the fifth part of HARD project, a series of joint collections and shows by students of fashion. The show HARD 005: SUB SUB CULTURE brings together the best student projects and is dedicated to contemporary youth subcultures. Second- and third-year students of fashion have studied youth ‘tribes’ with their ideology, language, and style, and translated their codes into contemporary fashion.

Start time - 19:00. 

Dancing workshops

Autumn is the time of rain and cloudy skies. To avoid depression and the worries about summer ending so quickly, everyone is invited to feel the energy of dance!

14:00 – 14:30 Zumba by Casablanca

14:30 – 15:00 Bachata by Casablanca

15:00 – 15:30 Salsa by Casablanca

15:30 – 16:00 Reggaeton by Casablanca

14:00 – 19:00 Football

The World Cup in Russia has ended, but impressions are still fresh. HSE Day marks the beginning of the HSE Football Championship – Russia’s biggest student football competition. The football season will open with a small tournament for students, lyceum students, staff and alumni.

• Format of one game: 5x5, two 10-minute periods;
• A team may consist of 7 to 10 players (the number should be the same during registration);
• Ball size: 5;
• HSE students, alumni, lyceum students and staff can participate;
• The goalkeeper may come from outside HSE.

Location: Neskuchny garden football field

14:00 – 19:00 Volleyball

The coming of autumn is not a reason to avoid beach volleyball, all the more so since HSE has both a men’s and women’s volleyball teams. We’ll meet on Gorky Park courts for a small tournament.

Information on the tournament:

• Men’s and women’s divisions: 8 pairs each; play-off tournament;
• Team division: 16 teams; group stage, then 8 teams progress to a knockout stage;
• 3 males and 2-3 females can enrol on a team; 4 persons from the team play on the court simultaneously, with 2 substitution players; no more than two females can be on the court in one team simultaneously; before each substitution, the teams agree that there is an equal number of men and women;
• Match until 15; game until two winning matches;
• All HSE students, alumni, lyceum students, and staff are invited to participate.

14:00 – 19:00 Ping Pong

Ping Pong is one of the most popular and affordable sports, and if you still have never played it, HSE Day is a good opportunity to start doing so. If you are an experienced player, you’ll have an opportunity to play for fun, or to take part in the competition.

• Divisions: men – 64 participants, women – 32 participants, pairs – 32 pairs.
• Game until two winning matches; matches until 11; two serves each.

14:00 – 19:00 Basketball

There are eight teams in the HSE basketball championship. They will open the season in Gorky Park, where all HSE students, alumni, and guests of the festival are invited.

• Format: streetball 3 vs. 3.

Ultimate

Ultimate Frisbee is the pride of HSE sports, since the university team has become the strongest student team in the national ranking!

Programme:

• Master class in ultimate frisbee for beginners;
• Flubber Guts tournament; free play.

14:00 – 19:00 Extreme Zone by the HSE Extreme Sports Club

A zone for those who love active leisure! Everyone is invited to ride a skateboard, longboard or roller skates in an extreme park, to balance on a slackline, and become immersed in the atmosphere of extreme sports.

Schedule:

14:00 – 15:00 Registration for competitions, warm up

15:00 – 15:30 Competitions, 1st race (kick scooter/ skateboard/ longboard)

15:30 – 17:00 Free riding. Relay race.

17:00 – 17:30 Competitions, 2nd race (kick scooter/ skateboard/ longboard)

17:30 – 17:45 Results tally, awards

During the entire day, instructors from the Extreme Sports Club will teach everyone who is interested how to ride longboards and skateboards.

Exhibition performances by HSE sports clubs

HSE offers its students not only an education, but also an opportunity to succeed in other areas, such as sports. At HSE Day, you’ll learn about various sports activities and clubs, and will have an opportunity to register in them right away. Master classes and exhibition performances in wushu, rhythmic gymnastics, fighting, capoeira, wrestling and yoga will be take place at the event.

This is not the first mass race or HSE but it will be the first time it takes place as part of HSE Day. Last year, on our anti-versary year, we were running from the darkness of ignorance, breath-taking stupidity, and bad grades. This year, we’ll be running for the joy of a task completed on time.

On HSE Day, we’ll run 5 km along Pushkinskaya and Andreevskaya embankments, from the Green Theatre, to Luzhniki Bridge.

Terms of participation

Participation in the race is free. Unlike in marathons, you do not need to present a medical certificate to take part, but we hope you will give your health and ability a realistic assessment prior to the run.

Please note that you need to read the race rules, as well as the participant form.

Anyone aged 14 years and older is welcome to take part. Participants ranging in age from 14 to 18 can be admitted to the competition only if they have a letter of consent from one of the parents (guardians), with an attached copy of the parent’s (guardian’s) passport. After the registration, each participant will receive a starter kit, which includes a start number with an electronic chip, and pins.

Registration for the race

Preliminary registration is required and will be available here on August 27.

Place and time

Start time: 14:00.

Start area opens at: 12:30.

Location: Gorky Park, Pushkinskaya embankment

Start area will be located near Stas Namin Theatre.

Starter kits

Starter kits will be available in advance at the HSE building at 18 Myasnitskaya Ulitsa, 5th floor, right wing (at the HSE Office of Public Relations), on August 10 and 11, from 11:00am till 7:00pm.

If you have questions, please contact Liudmila Mezentseva, organizer of the race, via email at lmezentseva@hse.ru or by phone at 8 (495) 772 9590 *12536.

To obtain a starter kit, participants must:

• Show ID confirming their identity and age;
• Show a letter of consent from a parent/guardian, with a copy of the parent/guardian’s passport (for anyone under 18);
• Complete and sign the registration form (which can be printed out and completed in advance).

 Правила участия (PDF, 155 Кб)

 Анкета участника (PDF, 275 Кб)

 Согласие на участие несовершеннолетнего (PDF, 209 Кб)

 Согласие на обработку персональных данных (PDF, 296 Кб)

14:00 — 19:00 Mafia

Perhaps it’s one of the most famous games in the world. If saving the city from the mafia, you can try to rescue the hotel from the Yakuza or kick the mafia gang from the casino. Just don’t forget to come to the Mafia tent on the embankment on September 13.

14:00 — 19:00 Soulmating

The university is a place where you can find true friends. At the Soulmating tent, located on the embankment, students of different faculties will be able to meet, discuss interesting topics and find a companion or even a best friend.

14:00 — 19:00 Activities

Visit an indoor shooting range with fortune telling, play jenga and tic-tac-toe, and put together a giant puzzle. You can play alone or with friends – it doesn't matter! Just find the Activities area on the embankment, and you won’t be bored.

14:00 — 19:00 Workshops

Weaving flower crowns, drawing covers for student IDs, sketching, and much more – here you’ll find anything that can be handmade and kept as a small souvenir from the 2018 HSE Day.

16:00 – 19:00 Dance Battle

Once again, a dance battle will be held at HSE Day, but this time it will be a real show! HSE’s best dancers will compete in the art of improvisation seeking to impress the jury and entertain the audience. While the judges will be deciding on who has been the best, special guests – professional dancing teams – will perform.

14:00 – 19:00 HSE vs HSE game

You think you have a good sense of humour? Are you able to wiggle out of any situation? Then, HSE vs HSE game is just for you! Put together a team and prove that you are the best among the competitors in this thrilling and unusual battle!

14:00 – 19:00 HSE Quiz

If you are fond of intellectual leisure, this location is for you! We’ll see whether you are able to think outside the box and answer tricky questions.

14:00 – 19:00 Project Maker game

Project Maker is a great way to see event management from the inside. Exchange resources with other players, establish connections and make deals in order to create your dream project.

14:00 – 19:00 Reality Quest

Reality Quest is a team quest game, where you’ll have a limited period of time to get out of a tent by solving various codes and puzzles. Those who love ‘Claustrophobia’ quests will love this one too.

14:00 – 16:00 Open-air Poetry

Words that unite us. Words that come together in an incredible pattern. Words that everyone say and that everyone knows – poems! Talented poets from HSE and their beautiful verses, recited from the stage!

Venue: Azhurnaya Rotunda.

14:00 – 19:00 Acoustics Musical Playground

Acoustics will be the centre that brings together more than 30 talented people from HSE, who will play cover songs by international and Russian musicians. Come to listen, and maybe to sing along!

16:00 – 19:00 Open-air music with 1/2 Orchestra

HSE’s Centre of Music Projects old friends, 1/2 Orchestra, will perform at this venue.

1/2 Orchestra is a new-generation Moscow orchestra, consisting of brass and percussion. On September 13, they will stay away classics, instead playing hip hop, funk, fusion, and avant-garde jazz. Fans of nightlife will enjoy the trendy electronic sound – another experiment by the orchestra.

Project participants call their style ‘new age brass’, and their stage is not only clubs, but also lawns, roofs, and boats. Park Gorky embankment and Azhurnaya Rotunda continue this list.

20:00 – 22:00 Concert at the Green Theatre

The characteristically warm and moving end to this year’s HSE Day will be an open-air concert at the Green Theatre that will welcome HSE students, alumni, and staff. Who will perform this year? THE HATTERS and HLEB!