School of Slavonic and East European Studies

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The School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES) was inaugurated in London on 19 October 1915 by Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, who went on to become the President of Czechoslovakia.

SSEES is one of the world's leading specialist institutions and the largest national centre in the UK for the study of Central, Eastern and South-East Europe and Russia. It teaches a wide range of subjects including, history, politics, literature, sociology, economics as well as a wide range of slavonic and eastern european languages.

In 1999 SSEES merged with University College London (UCL).

On 5 May 2004 the foundation stone of the new SSEES building in Taviton Street, Bloomsbury, London, was unveiled by the President of Poland Aleksander Kwaśniewski in the presence of HRH The Princess Royal, Chancellor of the University of London. The school moved to the new building in the summer of 2005. Václav Klaus, President of the Czech Republic, delivered the keynote address of his visit to the UK at a ceremony to open the building on 19 October 2005. Following Klaus's address, the Princess Royal unveiled the stone to mark the formal opening of the new building, on the occasion of the School's 90th anniversary.

The new building was designed by award-winning architects Short and Associates. As with other buildings by Short and Associates, the aim is not to be 'environmentally-friendly' simply by the addition of elements such as solar panels, but to make the very architecture itself a key part of the sustainability of the building. Thus the design, modelled by scientists at the University of Cambridge and elsewhere, facilitates the passage of cool air around the building and so avoids the need for air conditioning or other expensive, energy-using solutions. This is a first for the 'central London heat island'.[1 ]

Today, more than 60 academic staff work in the School, teaching and conducting research in the history, economics, sociology, anthropology, culture, literature and languages of the countries of the region. In 2005/2006 some 150 graduate students are registered at the School, studying taught MA degrees or undertaking PhD research. In addition the School has over 500 undergraduate students.

Along with its undergraduate and graduate teaching, the School enjoys an enviable reputation for the quality of its research. It is a major international centre for training the next generation of specialists in the region, through a combination of academic rigour and the skills and knowledge required by employers. It also specialises in analysing and disseminating information about changes in the area, publishing periodicals, papers and books, holding conferences, public lectures, seminars and briefings, and providing experts who can act as advisers to government, the media, and public and private institutions.

Notable Professors:

Notable Students: