Eastern Europe Universities, Colleges, and Polytechnics
Subcategories:
Russian Federation (European Region)
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Overview
The Eastern European region includes eastern Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Moldova. Although not as developed as Western Europe, these countries have quality of life rankings that fall into the top half of countries in the world according to the United Nation's Human Development Index which measures a combination of life expectancy, income and education.
While lagging behind the rest of Europe, the economies of most Eastern European countries have improved considerably in the past decade for various reasons. Some have benefited from higher manufacturing costs in Western Europe which have resulted in manufacturing operations being moved eastward. The countries that have joined the European Union (EU), which include Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, have seen growth as a result of economic integration with the rest of Europe.
The four countries of Turkey, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia are members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). All Eastern European countries belong to the Council of Europe except for Belarus which has not been admitted due to a lack of democratic elections and free speech rights.
Higher Education
Higher education is a high priority in many parts of Eastern Europe and especially in Russia where more than half the adult population has completed some higher education. However, there is wide variation in the quality of the education in the region and within individual countries. Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, Estonia and Moldova have all signed on to the Bologna Agreement which provides standards for degree programs across all European member countries.
A handful of Russian and Turkish universities rank within the top 500 on the QS World University rankings. The highest ranking universities in 2010 were Russia's Lomonosov Moscow State University which ranked 93rd and St. Petersburg University which ranked 210th. Bilkent University in Ankara, Turkey ranked 332nd.
Resources
European University Association
European Association for International Education