introduction

Tbilisi State University - the most important scientific and educational center of modern Georgia- was founded early in the past century. World renowned scientific schools of mathematics, physiology, psychology, oriental studies and others were formed within the TSU. Georgian Academy of Sciences was founded on the basis of the University in 1941. Technical, agrarian, medical, pedagogical and other institutions of higher education grew out of Tbilisi State University.

Georgian nation with its ancient and great traditions of education and culture regards with reverence the Ivane Javakhisvili State University of Tbilisi.

history of tsu

Tbilisi State University was founded in 1918 owing to the leadership and huge effort of a famous Georgian historian Ivane Javakhishvili and the group of his followers. It was the first and the only educational body of this type in Caucasus by that time.

Georgia has an ancient tradition of education, as evidenced by the functioning of the School of Philosophy and Rhetoric of Phazisi in Colchis (IV c.); as well as the setting up of cultural-enlightenment centers in Palestine (V c.), Syria (VI c.), Greece (X-XV cc.) and Bulgaria (XI c.); Gelati and Iqalto Academies in Georgia (XI-XII cc.); However, as a result of political-economic decrease and at last becoming the colony of Russia, there had been no national higher educational Institution in Georgia for the next few centuries.

Right after Georgia became independent and declared itself a national democratic state, one of the first achievements of Georgian people in the beginning of the 20th century was the foundation of Georgian National University in Tbilisi. Afterwards, through the Bolshevik and Communist period, in spite of the forced ideology and fierce censorship, Tbilisi State University managed to maintain national ardour, devotion to public ideals, raised the best representatives of Georgian intelligentsia, many famous scientific schools in mathematics, psychology, philosophy, linguistics, historiography were also established on the University basis. The foundation of Academy of Science of Georgia and many other higher educational institutions was also encouraged by the University.

A new era took start in the University after the collapse of the Soviet Union and re-establishment of independence of Georgia. Together with Christianity, the historical mission of the spiritual care and deepening of national self-consciousness of the country was set as the goals for the University. At the same time a particularly essential objective of the University is to support the development of a democratic society, culture and science, uninterruptible growth of the national level of civilization. That's why even today with adoration and great respect do Georgian people refer to it a Holy Temple of Science.

The University was solemnly opened on 26 January 1918, the day of remembrance of the Georgian King David the Builder. A church in the University garden, named after the King, has been functioning since 5 September 1995. In 1989 the University was named after its founder - Ivane Javakhishvili.

Petre Melikishvili, a well-known chemist, merited professor, was elected the first rector of the University. At its commencement, the University had only one faculty - that of philosophy. Ivane Javakhishvili, well-known Georgian historian, delivered the first lecture. At the beginning of 1918 the board of professors and lecturers numbered 18, the student body of the university counted 369 students and 89 free listeners.

Today the number of professors involved in tuition and training amounts to 3275, including 55 academicians and corresponding member of the academy, 595 professors and doctors, 1246 assistant professors and candidates of sciences.

Over 35 thousand students are studying at the University and its 8 regional branches. The very important rearrangements at the University began on 25 April 1994, when the scientific council of the University adopted "The Concepts of University Education", according to which since the year 1994 the University has entirely transferred to the two-stage form of study (the step-by-step rearrangements were launched in 1992) and moved forward to the integration in the European educational environment.

At the end of the I stage of the reform implemented, in the beginning of the year 2005, the bodies functioning at TSU were: 22 faculties with 184 chairs, 8 branches with 46 faculties, 3 scientific-research and study-scientific institutes, 81 scientific-research laboratories and centers, 161 study laboratories and rooms, clinical hospitals and diagnostic centers, publishing and editorial houses, the library with 3640693 items, 5 dormitories. 95 educational programs were used at the bachelor's course, 194 - at master's studies and 16 - at the single-step tuition.

Numerous universally recognized scientific schools came into being at Tbilisi University: mathematics (Andria Razmadze, Nikoloz Muskhelishvili, Ilia Vekua, Viktor Kupradze, Andro Bitsadze and others), physics (Elepter Andronikashvili, MateMirianashvili, Vagan Mamasakhlisov, Givi Khutsishvili Albert Tavkhelidze and others), psychology (Dimitri Uznadze and others), physiology (Ivane Beritashvili and others). National scholarly schools of Georgian historiography (Ivane Javakhishvili and others), history of literature (Korneli Kekelidze and others), Georgian philosophy (Shalva Nutsubidze and others), study of art (Giorgi Chubinashvili and others), Georgian and Caucasian linguistics (Akaki Shanidze, Giorgi Akhvlediani, Arnold Chikobava and others), Oriental and Classic philology (Grigol Tsereteli, Simon Qaukhchishvili, Giorgi Tsereteli and others) are worth mentioning particularly. Thanks to their scientific activity Kartvelology (Kartvelian Studies) has turned into the international scholarly discipline.

The relevant chairs and scientific research departments serve for preparation of post-graduate students and scientific degree explorers. 26 qualification councils operate for conferring scientific degrees in almost all fields of science.

Medical education was restored at the university in 1994, the tradition of medical education was revived - originally the specialty of medicine was opened at the faculty of biology and medicine, and the faculty of medicine became an independent unit in 2000. The assembly of University clinics was founded, the educational bases of which are distinguished for their powerful material and technical equipment and highly qualified scientific-intellectual potential, the Center for the Management of Health Care and the Department for Continuous Medical Education were opened, the board of trustees of medicine and medical information service were founded. The University diagnostic center provides the health care of the professors and lecturers and collaborators of the University.

"The Caucasian Business School" was set up in 1999. It trains specialists in business administration within the framework of the Bachelor's and Master's courses, The school was founded by the Consortium whose membership includes the Technical University of Georgia, Tbilisi State Institute of International Economic Relations and the State University of Atlanta, Georgia (USA).

A printing press was set up at the University, in 1923 and a publishing-house in 1933. The University Archive was founded in 1933. The scientific edition "The Proceedings of Tbilisi University" has been publishing since 1919. The program "Textbooks for Students" has been functioning since 1996. The University publishes two weekly newspapers "Tbilisis Universiteti" (since 1927) and "Kartuli Universiteti" (since 1998).

The museums of History, Georgian Emigration, Mineralogy, Geology and Paleontology, Geography, Zoology and Botany are functioning at TSU.

The five dormitories of TSU can accommodate up to 2200 living rooms.

The University has eight branches in the country- in Sukhumi, Meskheti, Ozurgeti, Sighnaghi (kakheti), Zugdidi, Qvemo Qartli (Marneuli), Javakheti and Poti.

The university schools, namely the Ivane Javakhishvili school N53, the N. Muskhelishvili school N55, prof. T. Georgia physical-mathematical boarding school, Tbilisi lyceum, Rustavi gymnasium, Gurjaani college and Khobi school function successfully.

Basic and applied research is successfully conducted at Tbilisi University. Ilia Vekua Institute of Applied Mathematics at TSU performs the computer-based mathematical modeling and digital realization of the problems related to the natural events and social economic issues basing on the theoretical conclusions. The basic directions of the scientific-research performance of the High Energy Institute of Physics are the experimental research of interaction between the elementary particles and the nucleons and nucleus in field of high energy, making the new systems of processing the information on accelerators, theoretical investigations in high energy particle physics and quantum field theory and nuclear physics.

In addition to basic studies, some scientists have focused their attention on applied work over the recent period, achieving substantial progress. Many important projects have been drafted out, recommendations have been developed and concrete results have been obtained. Their implementation will doubtlessly contribute to the advance of Georgian science and scholarship and development of the national economy. Special attention is given to the study of natural resources of Georgia, searching for ways of environmental problems. Regional and national peculiarities, historic traditions and prospects are taken into account in the study of various problems.

Tbilisi State University is the well-known center for development of humanities. The deliveries of lectures by the University Kartvelologists at foreign centers of learning, participation in international symposia and publication of monographs and papers abroad have assumed systematic character. The scholarly journal Georgica (in German), published jointly by Tbilisi University and Friedrich Schiller University of Jena, has been issued annually since 1978. Georgica is is published in Constance (Germany) through the cooperation of four universities - those of Tbilisi, Jena, Saarbr?cken and Constance since 1991. The international scholarly journal Phasisi has been published since 1999 by the Institute of Classical Philology, Byzantine and New Greek Studies, which was founded in 1997 through the support of the governments of Georgia and Greece, scientific-educational centers and intelligentsia.

Many international conferences and symposia have been held at Tbilisi University. The following are notable: International symposia of psychologists (1979, 1986), symposia on Georgian art (II-1977, IV- 1983, VI- 1989), international symposia on the teaching of the Russian language and literature (1980, 1984, 1988), problems of German literature (1983, 1989), Classical philology (1969, 1975, 1980,1990, 1995, 1996), religion and ethics (1907, international private law (1985), international symposia on Kartvelian Studies (I-1987, II-1988, III-1995).

Caucasian studies is one of the major trends of scholarly research, having inherited rich traditions. "Caucasica", an international scholarly journal, has been published since 1998.

Three international conferences have been held over the recent period on urgent issues such as, "Caucasus in the context of world history" (1996), "Peaceful Caucasus" (1998), "Caucasus at the turn of the millennia".

International conferences dedicated to major problems of the present day have been held at the University: "Caucasus, problems of democratization" (1995), "The law reform in Georgia" (1995), "The University reform in Georgia" (1995), "Hellenistic Studies over the centuries" (2000). Summer schools are regularly held for foreign scientists in Kartvelian studies (Kartvelologists).

Tbilisi University has close contacts with many foreign scientific and educational centres. These are: the University of Saarland and Jena (Germany), Emory University, Georgia State University, Bevard, Mount Holyoke and Williams College (USA), Saint Mary's University (Canada), Warsaw and Lodz Uiversities (Poland), Malaga and Salamanca Universities (Spain), Nantes, Paris 8, Paris 13, Grenoble and Toulon Universities (France), Bristol Polytechnical Institute, Brunel and London Universities (Great Britain), Budapest E?tv?s Lorand University (Hungary), Bilkent, Trabzon Black Sea and Ankara Universities (Turkey), Palermo, Rome and Sapienza, Piza and Venice Universities (Italy), Athens, Pirueus, Ioanina and Saloniki Universities (Greece), International Centre of Nuclear Physics, Aarhis University (denmark), Bucharest University (Romania), University of Vienna (Austria), Tehran and Gilan Universities (Ira), Cairo University (Egypt), Universities and scientific centers of the former Soviet Union, namely the Universities of Moscow, st.Petersburg, Kiev, Baku, etc., Association of European Universities, UNESCO, the Council of Europe, and other international organizations; Various universities and scientific centers of former Soviet Union, namely, the universities of Moscow, Saint-Petersburg, Kiev, Odessa, Yerevan, Baku, etc.

The University has the tradition of electing the foreign scientists and public figures for the honorary doctors of Tbilisi State University.

Students are widely involved in scientific researches at the University. Students' scientific conferences are held on an annual basis.

The University students actively participate in amateur performances. The chamber orchestra, the choir, the people's theatre, song companies of boys and girls, choreographic and modern dance companies, the theatre of one actor and pantomime, the theatre and studio "Mermisi" function at the University centre of culture and art. "Man-San-Kan", the club of the merry and the ready-witted, enjoys wide popularity among the youth.

The achievements of the University students in sports are notable. The students actively participate in various competitions both in Georgia and abroad, upholding the sporting honor of the country and the University; many champions of the world, Europe and Georgia, well-known sportsmen graduated from and are still studying at the University.

faculties

• Faculty of Exact and Natural Sciences
• Faculty of Humanities
• Faculty of Social and Political Sciences
• Faculty of Economics and Business
• Faculty of Law
• Faculty of Medicine