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The University of Helsinki is a university located in Helsinki, Finland. It is the oldest and largest university in Finland with the widest range of disciplines available. Around 38,000 students (including 5,500 post-graduate students) are currently enrolled in the degree programs of the university.
The university is a member of the League of European Research Universities and the Europaeum and places heavy emphasis on high-quality research.
History
- For the early history (1640-1809), see the main article Royal Academy of Turku
In 1809, Finland became an autonomous grand duchy in subjugation to imperial Russia, wherefore the name of the academy in Turku was modified to be Imperial Academy of Turku. Following the great city fire of Turku in 1827 and the move of the capital of the Grand Duchy of Finland, under Russian rule since 1809, to Helsinki, the university was relocated there starting from 1829 and Nicholas I re-named it Imperial Alexander University of Finland in honor of his late brother and predecessor Czar Alexander I of Russia, who had given new resources to he academy. This university was the practical center of Finnish culture in 19th century, and a remarkable cradle of nationalist movements, liberalization demands, political parties, collections of cultural materials, and student activities. It was named the University of Helsinki after Finland became independent in 1917.
The main building of the university, which was designed by Carl Ludvig Engel, was completed in 1832. It is located next to the Senate Square in the heart of Helsinki's neoclassical centre, facing the Cathedral and the Government's Palace. Most of the important buildings in the City Centre Campus, such as the University Library, the Observatory and several faculty builings, are also designed by Engel.
Campuses
The university is located on four main campuses. Originally, the entire university was located in the very centre of Helsinki, but due to the rapid growth of university since the 1930s, premises have been built and acquired in other areas.
The historical City Centre Campus has been the hub of activity ever since the university moved from Turku to Helsinki in the early 19th Century. The campus has a central location and reflects the architectural style of this part of the city. The university buildings in the city center house the Faculties of Theology, Law, Arts, Behavioural Sciences and Social Sciences plus administrative functions. Most of the buildings on the campus have a major architectural significance.
The Kumpula Campus, housing the Faculty of Science, is located four kilometers from the centre of Helsinki.
The Meilahti Campus, with the Faculty of Medicine, is a part of the Meilahti Hospital District on the outskirts of the city centre.
The Viikki Campus is located in a semi-rural area of Viikki, some 8 kilometres north-east of the city centre. It houses the Faculties of Agriculture and Forestry, Biosciences, Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy.
Organisation
The university is divided into eleven faculties. They are listed below in the official order that is used by the university, reflecting both the history of the university and the hierarchy of disciplines at the time when the university was established:
- Faculty of Theology (established 1640)
- Faculty of Law (established 1640)
- Faculty of Medicine (established 1640)
- Faculty of Arts (established 1852, separate section 1863, separate faculty 1992)
- Faculty of Science (established 1852, separate section 1863, separate faculty 1992)
- Faculty of Behavioral Sciences (incorporated 1974, separate faculty 1992, reorganized 2004)
- Faculty of Social Sciences (established 1945)
- Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry (established 1924)
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (incorporated 1974)
- Faculty of Biosciences (separate faculty 2004)
- Faculty of Pharmacy (separate faculty 2004)
It also comprises several independent institutes, such as research centres and libraries.
Research institutes within the university include the following:
- Aleksanteri Institute - A national centre of research, study and expertise pertaining to Russia and East Europe
- Helsinki Center of Economic Research (HECER) - A joint initiative of the University of Helsinki, the Helsinki School of Economics and the Swedish School of Economics
- Helsinki Institute for Information Technology (HIIT) - A joint research institute of the University of Helsinki and the Helsinki University of Technology
- Helsinki Institute of Physics
- Helsinki University Environmental Research Unit
- Institute of Biotechnology
- Neuroscience Center
- Rolf Nevanlinna Institute - Research institute of mathematics, computer science, and statistics
Notable people
- Elias Lönnrot (1802–1884), collector of Kalevala
- Zacharias Topelius (1818–1898), writer and historian
- Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld (1832–1901), geologist, arctic explorer
- Hugo Gyldén (1841–1896), astronomer
- Anders Donner (1854–1938), astronomer
- Karl Fritiof Sundman (1873–1949), astronomer
- Mika Waltari (1908–1979), novelist
- Esa Saarinen (b. 1953), philosopher
- Tarja Halonen, lawyer (LL.M.), President of Finland since 2000.
- Linus Torvalds, (b. 1969), software engineer and developer of Linux
- Jean Sibelius (1865–1957), composer, pursued studies at Faculty of Law
- Ernst Lindelöf (1870–1946), mathematician
- Rolf Nevanlinna (1895–1980), mathematician
- Lars Ahlfors (1907–1996), mathematician, one of two first to be awarded the Fields Medal in 1936
- Björn Kurtén (1924–1988), palaeontologist
- Artturi Ilmari Virtanen (1895–1973), Nobel Laureate (Chemistry, 1945)
- Jorma Ollila (b. 1950), Chairman of Nokia and Royal Dutch Shell (M.Pol.Sci.)
- Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, CEO of Nokia as of June 2006 (LL.M.)
See also
External links
- University of Helsinki - Official site
- Presentation of premises - Images of almost all university buildings and their lecture rooms
Education in Helsinki | Universities in Finland | 1640 establishments | Educational institutions established in the 1640s
Universität Helsinki | Πανεπιστήμιο του Ελσίνκι | Universidad de Helsinki | Université d'Helsinki | אוניברסיטת הלסינקי | Universiti Helsinki | Universidade de Helsinki | Helsingin yliopisto | Helsingfors universitet
"University of Helsinki"