LONDON’S GLOBAL UNIVERSITY
About UCL SSEES
SSEES Centenary
On 19 October 1915 Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, later the first President of Czechoslovakia, gave a public lecture in London on ‘The problem of small nations in the European crisis’. This event marked the foundation of the School of Slavonic Studies, as it was then called.
IMESS students outside the Jagiellonian University in Kraków.
President Václav Havel visits SSEES in March 1990 to launch a three volume biography of President Masaryk published by the School. A Fabergé goblet from a set originally given to the first SSEES Director, Sir Bernard Pares, by members of the Russian Duma, whose visit to the UK he organised in 1909.
One hundred years later, SSEES is one of the world’s leading institutions specialising in Central, Eastern, South-Eastern Europe, Russia and Eurasia. SSEES faculty offer distinctive BA, MA and PhD programmes in: Economics & Business, History, Languages & Culture, and Politics & Sociology. SSEES also leads the national inter-university Centre for East European Language Based Area Studies (CEELBAS) and the International Masters in Economy, State, and Society. In August 1999 SSEES opted to join UCL and, by adding its strengths and mission to one of the world’s leading universities, assured its continued contribution to the UK’s knowledge and understanding of a very interesting and important region. I congratulate SSEES on its many achievements and it is with pleasure that I invite SSEES friends, new and old, to celebrate its centenary in 2015.
Professor Michael Arthur UCL President and Provost 1
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SSEES History
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The idea for the School became a reality in March 1915 when R W. Seton-Watson proposed organising a Slavonic School at King’s College to the Principal, Ronald Burrows, ‘to remedy the neglect of Slavonic and East European Studies in the UK’. The School was formally approved to be established in the College on 13 July 1915 and became an Independent University Institute in 1932, thanks to the Director Bernard Pares. SSEES was officially inaugurated on 19 October 1915 by politician, sociologist and philosopher Tomáš G. Masaryk. Masaryk, Czechoslovakia’s first president, always hoped that the School would assist in establishing closer relations between Britain and the Slavs. By the end of 1915 the School had 20 language and history students and a staff of four.
1 R. W. Seton-Watson. One of the founders of the School and the first holder of the Masaryk Chair in Central European History.
2 Sir Bernard Pares, the first Director of the School.
3 Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, who gave the inaugural lecture that launched the School in 1915, returns in 1925 as President of Czechoslovakia.
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Prominent People
Clare Hollingworth studied Balkan History at the School under R. W. Seton-Watson. While travelling as a journalist for the Daily Telegraph on the German/Polish border in August 1939, she discovered German troops massed ready to invade Poland, and she was the first to inform the British authorities about the imminent German invasion. After the war she worked as a war correspondent and in 1963 it was she who broke the story of Kim Philby’s defection to the USSR in The Guardian. She recently celebrated her 100th birthday in Hong Kong where she has lived for many years. 4
Dr Robert Fico, Prime Minister of Slovakia from 2006-2010 and again since April 2012, attended SSEES as a Masaryk Scholar in the early 1990s when studying for his Candidate of Sciences degree on ‘The Death Penalty in Czecho-Slovakia’. In 1999, he announced at SSEES his plan to form the new party ‘SMER-Social Democracy’ which has since won two general elections. Fico gave the inaugural UCL-BACEE lecture at SSEES in 2009.
Prince Dmitry Petrovich Svyatopolk-Mirsky taught at the School in the 1920s and is the author of a masterly two-volume History of Russian Literature (1926-7) that remains a classic English-language guide to Russian literature to this day. Mentioned in George Orwell’s The Road to Wigan Pier, Mirsky was sympathetic to the Bolshevik cause and chose to go back to Soviet Russia, where he died in the Gulag accused of being a British spy.
Jacek Rostowski is an economist and politician who taught at SSEES for seven years and edited Communist Economies. He later became Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister of the Republic of Poland. He was named European Finance Minister of the Year in 2009 by The Banker magazine.
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SSEES Today
SSEES today is a dynamic international community, with almost 1000 students from 55 countries, ranging from undergraduate study to doctoral research. Since 2005 the 80-plus staff of the School has been housed in an innovative, award-winning building with its major research library of print, archive, film and electronic resources at its heart, attracting scholars from all over the world. Frequent public seminars and conferences on all aspects of Russia and Central and Eastern Europe feature talks by politicians, film makers, writers, diplomats, journalists and members of the business community as well as specialist academics. This creates a rich student experience and stimulating research environment. SSEES also publishes two international scholarly journals. Founded in 1922, Slavonic and East European Review features articles on language, literature, art, cinema, theatre, music, history, politics, social sciences, economics, anthropology and reviews of new books in the field. For just over a decade Central Europe has been publishing original research, discussion papers, marginalia, book, exhibition, music and film reviews. Regular Open Days and language tasters draw in prospective students to sample SSEES programmes. The study of language has always been central to the School, and this is evident from the unrivalled range of related language courses – some not available elsewhere in the UK – taught to undergraduates, postgraduates and in evening classes. 6
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SSEES Research
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East looks West
Between 2001 and 2013, Professor Wendy Bracewell led the project ‘East Looks West’. This challenged the way the study of travel writing had treated this genre primarily as a technology of Western power and depicted East Europeans as the immobile objects of Western travellers. The project discovered a wealth of East European travel writing and demonstrated how East Europeans used the genre for audiences at home and abroad. East European travel writing played an important role in the transnational interactions that created understandings of modernity and backwardness, civilisation and barbarism, ‘East’, ‘West’ and indeed ‘Europe’. Ultimately, the research showed that travellers from Eastern Europe have been active agents in creating/using ideas, rather than being simply the objects of other people’s representations.
1 Professor Wendy Bracewell. 2 Archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans in Zagreb, June 1932. Image from UCL SSEES Library archive.
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3 A peripatetic café in Elbasan, Albania. Image from the Hasluck collection, UCL SSEES Library archive.
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Developing health economics in Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia
Dr Christopher Gerry has explored a widely-cited controversy which claimed a causal link between mass privatisation and a 13% rise in male mortality in post-Communist societies. His team found that the claim did not stand up to closer scrutiny, due to a misunderstanding of the ways in which health is produced and in which socioeconomic outcomes, policies and institutions interact in the post-Communist region. Their follow-up piece of work illustrated the importance of correctly specifying the underlying data-generating process in the context of Russia and Eastern Europe, and showed that mass privatisation was not associated with post-communist mortality fluctuations. The research highlighted the complexity of the health patterns emerging in the post-Communist world and the need for indigenous research and teaching in health economics to understand them. 10
ANTICORRP - Anticorruption Policies Revisited:Global Trends and European Responses to the Challenge of Corruption
Professor Alena Ledeneva is leader of Pillar 3 – one of four main pillars of the ANTICORRP project. This investigates the links of corruption with media and organised crime and focuses on the implications of policy outcomes for specific professional and social groups. It also examines the social and fiscal costs of corruption. The project started in 2012 and will last for five years. It consists of 21 research groups in 16 EU countries. Special emphasis is placed on EU member states, accession and neighbourhood countries, and developing countries that receive significant EU aid.
The Mellon Project
The Mellon Project represents the collaboration between UCL and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation of New York to develop and disseminate interdisciplinary modes of research across the Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences and beyond. Its six-year ‘New Horizons’ programme is intended to promote understanding of fast-changing developments in the post-Soviet space, but also to work towards fundamental re-conceptualisation of Language-Based Area Studies to facilitate interdisciplinary and transnational research.
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Examples of PhD Research
JJ Gurga’s research focuses on fiction film in which a particular approach is adopted during the filmmaking process, one which involves time spent on location and close collaboration with local residents. Taking the school of Ukrainian poetic cinema of the 1960s as her example, she shows how, in utilising this approach, the films engage in ‘postmemorial work’ and attempt to rebuild intergenerational connections that have been disrupted by trauma.
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Erin Marie Saltman conducts research on the process of political socialisation and radicalisation among young political activists. Her doctoral thesis analyses socialising trends across the political spectrum in post-communist Hungary, looking at the role played by political parties, social movements, family, educational institutions and the media in cultivating partisanships. Her fieldwork included interviews with activists and experts as well as participant observation in political youth camps.
Ondřej Timčo’s research operates with the findings pertaining to former Ukrainian Prime Minister Pavlo Lazarenko’s trials in the United States and Switzerland, and the investigation conducted by the Ukrainian authorities. The data, which include financial transactions and witnesses’ testimonies, were obtained from the US District court in San Francisco and an electronic public access service - PACER. The data illustrate how offshore scheming enables clandestine networks to allocate social, economic and political capital in a dishonest manner.
Jennifer Griffiths’ research explores the ways in which the incorporation of Central Asia into the Russian empire in the late 19th century provoked a variety of responses to what was seen by many contemporary Russians as ‘alien land’. In particular, she examines how land and space were depicted in visual sources, with a view to analysing how locals and Russians conceived the spaces within which they lived.
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SSEES Teaching
With a combined undergraduate and postgraduate enrolment approaching one thousand students, SSEES is today the best place in the UK for anyone wishing to study Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Russia and Eurasia. An extensive range of courses in Economics and Business; History; Languages and Culture; and Politics and Sociology, together with experience of studying and living in one or more of the countries of the region, equips SSEES students with the skills they will need for access to a whole range of professional careers. Economics and Business are taught through the lens of the Emerging Market Economies of Eastern Europe and beyond. History is a broadly based programme ranging from the early modern period to contemporary history and including topics such as nationalities and national identity, gender issues, social and cultural history, government and society and the history of thought. Training in politics, sociology, international relations and security is combined with regional specialist courses that are of particular relevance today in view of the ongoing enlargement of NATO and the EU and an ever-changing international situation. The study of literature not only gives the students in-depth knowledge on the role and place of literature in Eastern Europe, but also familiarises them with the latest theoretical approaches such as memory and post-memory and the role of cities in today’s world. Languages can be studied from new beginner to advanced level as part of a degree programme or as additional learning on the SSEES Evening Courses programme. 14
Recognising the increasing importance of training postgraduate students in research methods, SSEES added to its traditional Masters programmes two Masters of Research (MRes) programmes: a one-year MRes, fast-tracking students in social science research methodologies and a two-year programme, incorporating a language. New Programmes To coincide with one hundred years since its foundation, in 2015 SSEES is launching an exciting new BA in History, Politics and Economics. Carefully structured to combine a foundation in each of these disciplines, the chosen specialisation is developed as the degree progresses and provides students with a unique opportunity to acquire and apply new expertise to understanding the social, cultural, economic and political world around us. 15
Language learning Starting in 1915 with Russian and Serbo-Croat, language teaching has always been important to SSEES. It is the only academic institution in the UK offering such an extensive range of Slavonic and East European Languages (Albanian, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Estonian, Finnish, Hungarian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovene, Ukrainian). On offer are degree programmes in languages such as Bulgarian and Romanian which, in the UK, are only available at SSEES. Innovative methods and access to the most up-to-date computer-assisted and online resources, many of which were created by SSEES’s own teachers, and small-group teaching ensure that students have every opportunity to acquire communicative skills and competence in reading and writing.
As part of UCL, SSEES participates in the four-year Modern Languages BA which offers over 250 possible modern language combinations and affords the opportunity of spending a year abroad in two different countries. Just as important, SSEES in addition contributes courses to the UCL Arts and Sciences degree (BASc).
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Film SSEES has an unparalleled range of courses on Russian, Soviet, Polish and East European cinema, both at BA and MA levels. The Library houses the recently named Bain-Graffy film collection, managed in partnership with Professor Julian Graffy. It includes the largest range of Russian films outside Russia alongside feature films and documentaries from the region as a whole.
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SSEES Partnerships
The Centre for East European Language-Based Area Studies (CEELBAS)
A major collaboration between the universities of Bath, Birmingham, Cambridge, Kent, Manchester, Oxford, Sheffield, Warwick, the School of Oriental and African Studies, and led by SSEES. The main objectives of the Centre are to realise the UK’s strategic commitment to the study of Central and Eastern Europe and Russia, to help set the research agenda for the study of the region and to inform policy, nationally and internationally. CEELBAS has received funding by the AHRC, ESRC and HEFCE, as well as the British Academy. IMESS
The International Masters in Economy, State and Society (IMESS) is the leading two-year programme in comparative area studies on the region. It aims to develop in-depth knowledge and understanding of Central, Eastern and SouthEastern Europe, the Baltics, Russia, the Caucasus and Central Asia. IMESS offers three discipline-based tracks: Economics and Business; Politics and Security; and Nation, History and Society and includes a spine of interdisciplinary training and language tuition, leading to an extended research-based dissertation. After spending the first year at UCL and the second at one of the seven partner universities in Belgrade, Budapest, Helsinki, Kraków, Moscow, Prague or Tartu, students receive a highly prestigious double degree. 18
Jagiellonian University in Kraków
The oldest university in Poland has also been the School’s oldest partner. The association with Jagiellonian University includes Erasmus exchange as well as the possibility of spending the second year of IMESS in Kraków.
Visiting Fellowships
Transparency International
This postdoctoral and early-career programme is a collaboration between SSEES and the governments of Poland, Hungary, Estonia and Lithuania. The scheme was devised to continue the successful Teacher Fellows programme which for many years was run with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the British Council. Negotiations continue with other governments who are interested in taking part.
SSEES students benefit from many links and associations forged with national and international organisations interested in their region of study. One such example is Transparency International, an associate partner of the postgraduate IMESS programme. As a non-profit making NGO, the organisation measures and fights corruption by working with governments, business leaders, local communities and other civil society organisations and by raising awareness of its devastating effects.
The Fellows join SSEES faculty to work on their research for a three-month period. Projects have ranged from ‘Marriage strategies of the medieval and early modern lesser nobility’ to ‘East European science-fictional space’ and ‘FDI and host country job mobility’. Many visiting scholars go on to hold prominent positions in academia, politics and the business and public sector, thus consolidating the School’s network throughout the region. 20
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Student Activities
The student journal, Slovo, has presented many postgraduates with their first publishing opportunity. In this fully refereed twice-yearly publication, they have been able to present their ideas and research in their various fields of study. Fully managed by the postgraduate community from its beginnings in 1988 it is currently into its 26th volume and is now published online as an open-access journal. Last year the Slovo blog was created for ‘informal and lively discussions and interpretations’ relating to the SSEES region. The first International Postgraduate Conference on Central and Eastern Europe was held at SSEES in 1999. Since then it has taken place in alternate years at SSEES and in different institutions around the world, including Warsaw, KrakĂłw and Cluj-Napoca. This year the conference returned to SSEES with over 140 postgraduate research students and post doctoral researchers from almost 100 different UK and foreign universities, providing an opportunity for postgraduates to exchange ideas and build contacts with international colleagues from a wide variety of disciplines.
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Across UCL a variety of societies help to broaden the student experience and encourage participation in social activities. These include societies specific to the SSEES region – Baltic, Masaryk, Polish, Romanian & Moldovan and Russian – as well as the Russian Business Society, Diplomacy in Action and Economics & Finance. Through the Volunteering Society, a network run by students for students, SSEES students have been involved in translation work with the Roma community in London. The SSEES Student Committee regularly runs social events for undergraduates. One of the most successful events featured foreign ambassadors based in London who talked about careers in diplomacy.
SSEES Talks…
‘SSEES Talks’ is a series of public lectures organised entirely by and for students. With speakers including high profile journalists, activists and the occasional presidential candidate, the talks bring together students and experts discussing topics from Russian foreign policy to Roma rights. Combining in-depth analysis with informal discussion – evenings usually end in the pub – SSEES Talks have been very successful and are a part of the active and unique student life at SSEES. 24
Back cover SSEES Football Club, affectionately known as the ‘Red Army’, sports three teams and has regularly beaten other London University teams.
www.ucl.ac.uk/ssees + 44 (0)20 7679 8700
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