Topic: research

On 20 October 2026, a seminar entitled "Research Assessment Reform in Europe: What Does It Mean for the University of Tartu?" was held at the University of Tartu Library. The aim of the seminar was to provide participants with an overview of the objectives of the international Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment and to discuss the changes needed to implement its principles in practice at the University of Tartu.

On 21 October, the doctoral researchers’ three-minute thesis competition took place at the conference hall of the University of Tartu Library.

Registration is now open for the University of Tartu’s three-minute thesis competition for doctoral researchers, which will take place on 21 October at the University of Tartu Library. The deadline for registration is 12 October.

The University of Tartu and The Guild of research-intensive universities, together with the Estonian Academy of Sciences and Universities Estonia, call on the Estonian government to oppose cuts to research and innovation funding in the ongoing negotiations over the European Union’s next long-term budget in the European Council.

The Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies and the Ukraine Centre of the University of Tartu are participating in the international project RESTART, which aims to enhance the research and innovation capacity of Sumy State University in Ukraine and support its integration into the international research community.

The University of Tartu, together with seven leading European university networks and research organisations are calling on EU policymakers to increase investment in research and innovation in the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF).

A recently completed study on conspiracy theories, the most extensive one ever conducted in Europe, found that narratives circulating across national borders adapt to local history, cultural memory and social tensions. A book presenting the study’s findings has now been published, co-edited by Mari-Liis Madisson, Associate Professor of Semiotics at the University of Tartu.

The DNA of two randomly selected people is approximately 99.9% identical. However, differences in the remaining 0.1% of the genome influence many individual traits, including appearance, disease risk, and the body's response to medications. A study by researchers at the University of Tartu found that this small amount of genetic variation may also be linked to several personality traits.