Nibs

Agents of the city’s office of military enlistment fanned out among dorms across Moscow, the day after the government cancelled all draft deferrals. The raids were intended to catch students unawares. Recruitment officers, each accompanied by two police officers, sometimes literally dragged students from their beds. Some students were taken directly to medical clinics to undergo physical examinations, reportedly in violation of a federal law that requires supporting documents from the place of study and allows young men up to three days to contest their conscription. Konstantin Kudryavtsev, an assistant dean in the chemistry department at Moscow State University, said that two of his students had been taken under guard for physicals even though they had been enrolled in the university’s military courses – a status that, by law, entitles them to deferments.
Rector calls

Last Wednesday, TU Rector Magnificus dr. Jacob Fokkema began his monthly visits to university student houses. In the coming months, Fokkema will visit one student house a month in an effort to create an informal setting for interesting debates. Fokkema and the students debate current news items they consider relevant to education, research and the future of TU Delft. “Of course I often speak to students,” Fokkema says, “but those conversations are often more formal. I’d like to speak to them with my feet on the table so to speak, to get a better idea of what students think of their education and what they’d like to see change.” Marion Vredeling, of Studium Generale Delft, the rector-student meeting organizer, says students also want to communicate informally with their education provider. The next Fokkema/student debates are on Wednesday 16 March, Tuesday 26 April and Wednesday 25 May. They are held in Dutch, in Dutch student houses. It is unknown whether Rector Fokkema plans to also meet with English-speaking foreign students in future.

www.sg.tudelft.nl
Partnership I

The Unesco-IHE Institute for Water Education and TU Delft will sign an extended partnership agreement. Both institutions place great emphasis on their long working partnership in the fields of water management, environment and infrastructure. The agreement will be for five years, with the option to extend it. The agreement offers students of both institutions the possibility to take part in the educational modules of both institutions. Also, staff will be exchanged and joint research and publications encouraged.
Partnership II

President Gu Binglin of Tsinghua University in Beijing visited TU Delft last week. He was here to formally extend the partnership agreement between the two universities. President Binglin, who is also a professor of physics, visited several TU labs and various faculties. Asked if Tsinghua University can learn anything from TU Delft, President Binglin replied, “The way in which the TU’s academic and research programs work closely and productively with industry is very interesting for us.”
Partnership III

The EU and India recently concluded a ‘historic’ partnership agreement that will boost economic, political and scientific ties between the 25-member bloc and the world’s largest democracy. The strategic partnership was sealed during the eighth EU-India summit in Den Haag. Dutch premier Jan Peter Balkenende signed on behalf of the Union, and his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh represented India. Describing the EU and India as “poles of stability”, Balkenende added that “there is a lot of instability in the region between us.” The pact paves the way for the Union and India to co-operate on a number of important issues, including education. The two sides also signed an accord worth €43 million to extend European scholarships to 3000 Indian masters degree students over the next three years . the largest EU programme of its kind.

Wake-up call

The Russian military raided university dormitories in a surprise move to snare fresh conscripts following the end of university deferments from mandatory military service. Agents of the city’s office of military enlistment fanned out among dorms across Moscow, the day after the government cancelled all draft deferrals. The raids were intended to catch students unawares. Recruitment officers, each accompanied by two police officers, sometimes literally dragged students from their beds. Some students were taken directly to medical clinics to undergo physical examinations, reportedly in violation of a federal law that requires supporting documents from the place of study and allows young men up to three days to contest their conscription. Konstantin Kudryavtsev, an assistant dean in the chemistry department at Moscow State University, said that two of his students had been taken under guard for physicals even though they had been enrolled in the university’s military courses – a status that, by law, entitles them to deferments.
Rector calls

Last Wednesday, TU Rector Magnificus dr. Jacob Fokkema began his monthly visits to university student houses. In the coming months, Fokkema will visit one student house a month in an effort to create an informal setting for interesting debates. Fokkema and the students debate current news items they consider relevant to education, research and the future of TU Delft. “Of course I often speak to students,” Fokkema says, “but those conversations are often more formal. I’d like to speak to them with my feet on the table so to speak, to get a better idea of what students think of their education and what they’d like to see change.” Marion Vredeling, of Studium Generale Delft, the rector-student meeting organizer, says students also want to communicate informally with their education provider. The next Fokkema/student debates are on Wednesday 16 March, Tuesday 26 April and Wednesday 25 May. They are held in Dutch, in Dutch student houses. It is unknown whether Rector Fokkema plans to also meet with English-speaking foreign students in future.

www.sg.tudelft.nl
Partnership I

The Unesco-IHE Institute for Water Education and TU Delft will sign an extended partnership agreement. Both institutions place great emphasis on their long working partnership in the fields of water management, environment and infrastructure. The agreement will be for five years, with the option to extend it. The agreement offers students of both institutions the possibility to take part in the educational modules of both institutions. Also, staff will be exchanged and joint research and publications encouraged.
Partnership II

President Gu Binglin of Tsinghua University in Beijing visited TU Delft last week. He was here to formally extend the partnership agreement between the two universities. President Binglin, who is also a professor of physics, visited several TU labs and various faculties. Asked if Tsinghua University can learn anything from TU Delft, President Binglin replied, “The way in which the TU’s academic and research programs work closely and productively with industry is very interesting for us.”
Partnership III

The EU and India recently concluded a ‘historic’ partnership agreement that will boost economic, political and scientific ties between the 25-member bloc and the world’s largest democracy. The strategic partnership was sealed during the eighth EU-India summit in Den Haag. Dutch premier Jan Peter Balkenende signed on behalf of the Union, and his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh represented India. Describing the EU and India as “poles of stability”, Balkenende added that “there is a lot of instability in the region between us.” The pact paves the way for the Union and India to co-operate on a number of important issues, including education. The two sides also signed an accord worth €43 million to extend European scholarships to 3000 Indian masters degree students over the next three years . the largest EU programme of its kind.