tallinn university of technology

Tallinn University of Technology (TUT) (Estonian: Tallinna Tehnikalikool) is the technical university of Estonia, and one of the two or three most important institutions of higher education in Estonia generally. It is located in the capital city of Estonia, Tallinn.

Character

Among the most prominent engineering and technical universities in the Baltics, and indeed of the new EU member countries, TUT has many patents to its name. It is affectionally called the "MIT of the North".

Structure

Departments

Civil Engineering
Energy
Humanities

Public Administration Area

Public Administration and European Studies (Prof. Rainer Kattel)
Local Government (Prof. Sulev Meltsemees)

Technology Governance Area

Technology Governance and Public Management (Prof. Wolfgang Drechsler)
Technology Governance and Development Strategies (Prof. Erik S. Reinert)

verious service departments (non-degree) for other departments

Informatics
Chemistry and Materials Sciences
Economics and Business Administration
Sciences
Mechanics

Institutes

Estonian Institute for Economics
Geology
Cybernetics
Oil Shale research
Estonian Institute for Energy Research
Marine Systems

History

Expressed by learned community in the early twentieth century, the need for engineering specialists trained nationally became urgent. Until then, young people from Estonia had received their specialist education in St. Petersburg, Germany or Riga. Opportunities had to be sought for engineering-minded people to acquire Estonian-based education adapted to local conditions and needs. On 17 September 1918, the Estonian Engineering Society managed to open an Estonian-based engineering school named Special Engineering Courses. That date has been recognised as the founding date of Tallinn University of Technology. Programmes were offered in mechanical, electrical, civil and hydraulic engineering, shipbuilding and architecture. In 1919, the school became the private Tallinn College of Engineering, which in 1920 was declared a state institution. Teachers' efforts to develop Estonian terminology for science and technology proved fruitful and the first engineering books were published. In 1923, the first engineering graduation theses were defended in Estonia. In the same year, a State laboratory of Materials Testing opened for research work. By the 15 September 1936 Act of the Head of State, the school was granted the status of University, named Tallinn Technical Institute. The institute had two faculties: civil and mechanical engineering and chemistry and mining. In 1938, the name - Tallinn Technical University - was effective. In 1940 the Faculty of Economics, in 1958 the Faculty of Power Engineering and in 1965 the Faculty of Control Engineering were founded. TUT was until very recently known in English as Tallinn Technical University (hence the acronym TTU, which is the same in Estonian). It is affectionately called the "MIT of the North".

Alumni

Next to the entire technological elite of Estonia, alumni also include numerous industrialists and businessmen, including the Chairman of Hansapank, the biggest bank of the region, Indrek Neivelt; der Chairman of the Estonian Chamber of Commerce, Toomas Luman; and the former Prime Minister and eminent industrialist Tiit Vhi. The President of the Estonian Academy of Science, Jri Engelbrecht, ist also a member of TUT.