One of the University's unique features has been its direct involvement in socioeconomic reforms in Russia, which has allowed HSE to develop as a “project and research university”, where education, fundamental and applied research and “think tank" activities are combined for the comprehensive development of society.

Now a dynamic university with four campuses, HSE is a leader in combining Russian education traditions with the best international teaching and research practices.  HSE offers outstanding educational programmes from secondary school to doctoral studies, with top departments and research centres in a number of international fields.

HSE operates more than 100 research institutes and centres, and more than 20 international laboratories led by foreign scholars. The number of research staff has grown from around 100 to almost 800 over the last ten years. 

HSE not only researches innovation, it creates a multi-level infrastructure for its development:

• Educational programmes in the field of innovation management
• Incentives and support for start-ups and other entrepreneurial initiatives by students, alumni and instructors
• Aid in registering intellectual property rights and commercialization of university staff members’ intellectual property
• Organizing a platform for interaction between aspiring entrepreneurs and venture capital investors.

Business Incubators have been opened at the HSE’s Moscow and Perm campuses; the Nizhny Novgorod campus features the Centre for Entrepreneurship, while the St. Petersburg campus hosts a Centre for Innovative Entrepreneurship. These organizations teach residents effective methods of building business, provide expert support for their projects, and help to attract investment and partners.

The HSE Innovation Centre works to commercialize the intellectual property of university staff members, forms a belt of innovative HSE ‘subsidiaries’, and helps to attract outside investment and partners for their projects. 

HSE enjoys effective partnerships with more than 130 prestigious foreign universities, including double-degree programmes, research centres, international programmes and organisations (e.g. OECD, the European Commission, Eurostat, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNCTAD, World Bank, IMF, ISTC, IIASA, USRF), national and transnational companies.

In the Black Sea Horizon project, HSE is represented by its research branch – Institute for Statistical Studies and Economics of Knowledge (ISSEK). ISSEK provides complex analytical and policy studies focused on Science and Technology (S&T), innovation and education, including integration of education and science; assessment of innovation climate; identification of national S&T priority areas and critical technologies via foresight studies; development of complex information systems and policy recommendations.

In the domain of international cooperation support and coordination, selected areas of ISSEK expertise include:
•    Identification of promising thematic areas and key instruments of international S&T cooperation between Russia and foreign countries;
•    Analysis of perspective global S&T trends; 
•    Analysis of dynamics of changing S&T specialization of leading foreign countries;
•    Analysis of key instruments of Russian state policy aimed at enhancing international S&T cooperation;
•    Analysis of state policy of leading foreign countries aimed at supporting international S&T cooperation and identifying S&T priorities;
•    Development of scenarios of international S&T cooperation;
•    Development of methodological manuals on Russian researchers’ participation in international projects;
•    Development of recommendations for government authorities on improving the existing instruments of state S&T policy aimed at enhancing international S&T cooperation, based on best international practices;
•    Development of recommendations for government authorities on interaction with international organisations (the OECD, European Commission, et al.);
•    Developing recommendations on key trends of integrating Russian science into the global and European research area;
•    Management of international projects.    
   
In addition, ISSEK analytical activity is also focused on identifying good practices and barriers to fruitful, mutually-beneficial EU-Russia S&T cooperation, assessing strengths and weaknesses (SWOT analysis) of bilateral and national EU Member States (MS) – Russia S&T programmes, carrying out inventory of existing legal documents and agreements regulating S&T cooperation, including bilateral agreements between Russia and EU MS, as well as of instruments for their implementation. Special attention is given to identifying areas of mutual interest for cooperation between EU MS, AC, and Russia. 

The ISSEK team has a long-term experience in EU projects, starting from the 5th EU RTD Framework Programme. In addition, since 2004, ISSEK has hosted Mobility NCP and INCO NCP. In 2015, the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation has extended this mandate by appointing ISSEK as a host to three NCPs:
•    Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions on skills, training and career development;
•    Inclusive, innovative and reflective societies;
•    Science with and for Societies.  

The NCPs provide information and consulting support to researchers on participation in Horizon 2020 through the dedicated web site, Newsletters, e-mails, personal meetings, etc.

Please find more and detailed information at University's Website.