Eduniversal Ranking: 6 Global Deans React

Estonian Business School’s Meelis Kitsing

Meelis Kitsing, Rector of Estonian Business School

P&Q: What initiatives or strategic priorities over the past year do you believe most directly contributed to your school earning (or maintaining) the 5 Palmes of Excellence designation?

Our strategic priorities have centered on elevating teaching quality and strengthening research and development. We have operated in an exceptionally challenging environment marked by a continuous “permacrisis” – including the lingering effects of Covid, Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine, economic slowdown, high inflation, and discriminatory higher-education policies in Estonia. Despite these headwinds, we remained committed to quality. This is reflected not only in receiving the 5 Palmes of Excellence, but also in becoming the first institution in Estonia to receive EFMD’s five-year accreditation for our bachelor’s programme.

How has your school expanded or strengthened its global network, partnerships, or cross-border programs in ways that set it apart from regional peers?

Estonian Business School has historically been a teaching-oriented university, but over the past year we have significantly broadened and internationalized our focus. First, we have expanded our research and development cooperation through programs such as Interreg and Horizon. These initiatives extend beyond traditional academic research to include capacity building and venture creation. For example, we are implementing a capacity-building project with Bocconi University, collaborating with Hanken School of Economics to support new startups, and working with leading Nordic universities on AI-focused projects involving top computer-science scholars. Our university-linked accelerators – most notably Startup Wise Guys – have also earned international recognition, including placement in FT rankings.

Second, we have strengthened and diversified our cross-border education portfolio. In addition to traditional exchange programs like Erasmus, we have developed short, intensive study programs with partners across Europe and North America. Some take the form of study visits introducing students to Estonia’s digital ecosystem, while others are fully integrated into partner curricula. For instance, universities in Switzerland and Germany have incorporated our programs such as summer school on digitalization and sustainability into their master’s programs.

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