Our Academy

The Buryat State Academy of Agriculture is the first higher educational institution in the Republic of Buryatia. It was founded in 1931 as the Buryat-Mongolian Agropedagogical Institute. In 1932 the Agropedagogical Institute was reorganized into two institutes – pedagogical and zootechnical. In 1934 there was founded a veterinary faculty and the institute was named the Zooveterinary Institute. Later there were opened new faculties: agronomy (1932) and technology (1954). In 1962 the faculty of technology was reorganized into the East-Siberian Institute of Technology. So, the Buryat Agricultural Institute became the so-called incubator of new schools of higher learning in Buryatia.

For the years of its existence the Academy has become one of the largest schools of higher learning of the Eastern Siberia and the Far East.

In 1995 as a result of the state attestation the Agricultural Institute was renamed into the Buryat State Academy of Agriculture. In 1998 the Academy was named after Filippov V.R., a talented scientist and a famous statesman of Buryatia, and a rector, who had made a valuable contribution to the Academy’s development.

At present seven faculties of the Academy train specialists for different branches of agriculture. They are the faculties of Agronomy, Technology, Economics, Veterinary Medicine, Engineering, Humanities and the Institute of Land Management, Cadastre and Land-Reclamation. Training is maintained at a very high level. The teaching staff comprises highly skilled specialists, among them – doctors of sciences and professors, candidates of sciences and associate professors, experienced teachers and teaching assistants. Our academy has a student body of about 6,000 people. The greater part of them, about 4,000, consists of full-time students. About 2,000 students study by correspondence. Full-time students get stipends.

The graduates of our Academy can take post-graduate courses. Post-graduate students work in close contacts with the teaching staff when doing their research work. Every year the Academy assigns young specialists to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Kazan and Irkutsk.

The faculty of Technology founded in 1931 is the oldest one in Transbaikalia. Since then the faculty has trained more than 4000 specialists. There are five chairs at the faculty.

The faculty of Veterinary Medicine was established in 1935 and trained more than 5000 veterinary doctors. Training of specialists is carried out at nine chairs of the faculty. The faculty staff is working on a number of research areas recognized by the Russian and international scientific communities.

The Engineering faculty was founded in 1961 and trained over 5000 highly skilled engineering mechanics. The faculty has nine chairs. Research at the faculty is conducted in many areas of agricultural production.

The faculty of Agronomy was founded in 1952. There are five chairs at the faculty. The faculty has trained almost 5000 specialists.

The faculty of Economics was founded in 1962. Ten chairs provide training of specialists at the faculty. Teachers of the faculty participate in Russian and international programs. They take training and qualification upgrading courses in leading Russian and International universities and research institutes.

The faculty of Humanities was established in 2003. The faculty consists of five chairs.

The Institute of Land Management, Cadastre and Land-Reclamation, which was opened in 2004, consists of three chairs.

At the Academy there are many classrooms, lecture-halls, drafting-rooms and well-equipped laboratories. There are several computer classrooms, the center of information technologies, experimental laboratories for research work and a good library with 500 thousands volumes of books on various subjects. The Academy has E-mail and is connected to Internet. The Academy is doing its best to construct comprehensive information system and to provide its faculty members and students the full environments of free information acquisition. There is also a publishing center issuing educational supplies for the students.

The main building of the Academy is one of the places of interest in Ulan-Ude. There are also 3 buildings – veterinary clinics, morphological building and vivarium. The Academy has mechanical workshops, a training ground, a motor-car park and experimental plots for research work. At our Academy there are also four hostels, some canteens, a big dining room and a sports hall.

The course of study lasts for five years. The academic year is divided into two terms: the winter term and the summer term. The students study different subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, foreign languages and other special subjects. Many students attend some optional courses on different specialities. At the end of each term students take current exams and credit-tests.

Practical training of students is held on “Baikal” experimental training farm. The students carry out experiments there, learn how to cultivate the soil, to drive tractors and lorries, to plough the ground, to sow crops and to weed fields and vegetable gardens.

Every year hundreds of students graduate from the Buryat State Academy of Agriculture and work in various branches of national economy.

Exercise 3. Answer the following comprehension questions.

1. What are the oldest faculties of the Academy?
2. What was the result of state attestation in 1995?
3. How many faculties are there at the Academy and what are they?
4. Why was the Academy named after V.R. Filippov?
5. Whom does the teaching staff comprise?
6. Where does the Academy assign post-graduate students?
7. How many buildings has the Academy? What are they?
8. How long does the course of study last?
9. What subjects do the students study?
10. Where is practical training of students held? What do they usually do there?

Exercise 4. Agree or disagree with the statements using the following conversational phrases.

- Oh, yes, that’s right. - Oh, no, that’s wrong.

- That’s quite right. - I am afraid, you are not right.

- Quite so. - On the contrary.

- That’s the point. - You’ve got it wrong.

1. The Buryat State Academy of Agriculture is the first higher educational institution in

Buryatia.

1. The Academy of Agriculture was founded in 1932.
2. The Agricultural Institute was renamed into the Academy in 1994.
3. There are 3 faculties at the Academy.
4. The teaching staff comprises highly skilled specialists.
5. Post-graduate students are not engaged in research work.
6. The course of study lasts for 7 years.
7. The students study only special subjects.
8. Practical training is held in “Baikal” experimental training farm.
9. At the Academy there is also a hostel, a canteen and a sports hall.

Exercise 5. Complete the following sentences.

1. The Buryat Agricultural Institute became the so-called...
2. For the years of its existence...
3. The teaching staff comprises highly-skilled specialists, such as...
4. The Academy is well-equipped, there are...
5. The faculty of technology was founded...
6. The chairs of the faculty of humanities are...
7. The buildings of the Academy are...
8. The academic year is divided...
9. Practical training of students is held...
10. Every year hundreds of students graduate from...

Exercise 6. Translate the sentences into English.

1. В прошлом, в Академии было только два факультета: зоотехнический и ветеринарный.
2. В прошлом, два факультета Академии были преобразованы в высшие учебные заведения.
3. Наша Академия стала так называемым инкубатором для БГУ и ВСГТУ.
4. Преподавательский состав, студенты и аспиранты часто пользуются электронной почтой и Интернетом.
5. Ветеринарный факультет имеет три здания – ветеринарную лечебницу, морфологический корпус и виварий.
6. Инженерный факультет имеет технические мастерские, учебный полигон и автомобильный парк.
7. БГСХА готовит специалистов для разных отраслей народного хозяйства.

Exercise 7. Make up the plan of the text.

Exercise 8. Think of the following situation.

Pretend you have met a friend of yours. He/she has just left school and does not know what higher educational institution to enter. So, convince him/her of entering the Academy and tell him/her as much as possible about the Academy. Use your plan and key-words given below.

• The Buryat State Academy of Agriculture is
• It was founded in
• In 1995
• In 1998
• Seven faculties
• The teaching staff
• The student body
• Post-graduate students
• Equipment of the Academy
• The buildings of the Academy
• Studies
• Practical training
• Out-of-class activities

Exercise 9. Retell the text using your plan.

Exercise 10. Read the text and find out what other higher educational institutions there are in

Ulan-Ude.

Today, in Ulan-Ude there are five higher educational institutions. They are the Buryat State University, the East Siberian University of Technology, the East Siberian State Academy of Culture and Arts, the Buryat State Academy of Agriculture. There is also the Research Institute. Here is the information about some of them.

The Buryat State University was founded in 1995 on the basis of the Buryat State Teachers’ Training Institute and Ulan-Ude Branch of Novosibirsk State University. Today the Buryat State University is one of the biggest educational, scientific and cultural centers in Eastern Siberia. More than ten thousand people work and study here. That is why no wonder the University is considered to be the largest organization in the Republic of Buryatia.

During the ten-year existence of the Buryat State University a number of big changes took place in its structure. In order to satisfy the Republic’s and neighboring regions’ skilled personnel requirements, some new faculties were opened (faculties of economics and management, law, medicine, social psychology). As for “old” faculties, they underwent structural changes. Two institutes (the Institute of Ecology and the Institute of Pedagogical Education) were organized at the University. Today at fifteen faculties there are seventeen specialities according to which students are trained.

Nowadays the East Siberian University of Technology is one of the leading schools of higher learning of the region. The specialists of more than 60 directions and specialities are trained here. The history of the University began in 1962. Then the first technical college - the East Siberian Institute of Technology - has been opened on the basis of three specialities of the technological faculty of the Buryat Agricultural Institute. For the last years the number of students has considerably grown. Today more than 10 000 students are trained here.

The history of the East Siberian State Academy of Culture and Arts began in 1960. At that time the East - Siberian Library Institute was opened. The opening of the institute played a very important role in the cultural and scientific life of the Republic of Buryatia and all Eastern Siberia. In 1964 the institute was renamed into the East - Siberian State Institute of Culture, and in 1995 it received the status of academy.Todaythe East Siberian State Academy of Culture and Arts is one of the leading educational institutions among higher schools of culture of the Russian Federation.

About 6000 students are trained at the academy. Preparation is conducted under all forms of training. Educational process, research and creative activity in the academy are provided with the highly skilled scientific and pedagogical staff. In the structure of the academy there are 2 institutes, 6 faculties, 36 chairs, post-graduate courses on four scientific specialities, dissertational councils, the international department, a publishing department, scientific laboratories, Opera studio, student's theatres, the Educational academic complex of culture and arts and welfare technologies of Eastern Siberia and the North.