On 20 September, marks the first release of European university rankings by QS Quacquarelli Symonds, a global leader in providing services, analytics, and insights to the higher education sector wolrdwide. According to these rankings, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (VILNIUS TECH) holds the 307th position out of 690 ranked universities in Europe, making the fourth best in Lithuania and placing it among the top 45 percent of universities on the continent.

The time displayed by the Doomsday Clock symbolises the decline of civilisation: the closer to midnight, the closer to the self-destruction of humankind. This symbolic figure is designed to give society a clear message about the grave and ever-growing existential threat posed to the world by nuclear weapons, the climate crisis, and future technologies being developed.

On September 5th, the submission of applications for the "Erasmus+" study exchange in the spring semester of 2023-2024 began.

As the technology sector continues to grow in Lithuania, employers are facing the challenge of finding employees at various skill levels. Nevertheless, there is hope in the fact that the number of young people choosing technology-related studies is on the rise. The number of students entering engineering and technology programs at VILNIUS TECH alone has increased by more than one fifth this year.

We hear about artificial intelligence (AI) almost daily. Some people are fascinated by AI technologies and the possibilities they offer, while others are dismayed. Nevertheless, AI is rapidly making inroads into many areas of human life. Lithuanian researchers are not slowing down either – to make the country’s research and innovation ecosystem stronger and internationally competitive, KTU and its partners will establish a joint Centre of Excellence of AI for Sustainable Living and Working. The launch event AI for Sustainable Future will take place on 14 September.

This year, the winners of the annual Vilnius University (VU) Foundation competition held to attract young researchers are Dr. Ilona Jurkonytė and doctoral student Marija Norkūnaitė, candidates nominated by the VU Institute of International Relations and Political Science and Dr. Šarūnas Šavėla, nominated by the VU Faculty of Philology.

Today, the seminar of the Francophone University Agency (AUF) has started at Mykolas Romeris University (MRU) to discuss science and sports diplomacy and other relevant topics. The seminar is attended by representatives of AUF units, ambassadors of France, Canada, Armenia, Georgia and Romania. The event will last two days.

On September 4th launched VILNIUS TECH Digital Badge System, designed to help students in participating university activities and improving their competencies. The main goal of this system is to award students with badges for their involvement in events, training sessions, conferences, event organization, volunteering, and other exceptional achievements. Later on, they receive certificates that prove their experience.

Research ethics and academic ethics are by far not the only questions related to the research integrity topic. Various aspects of Research Integrity, including Research Culture, Mental Health, Mentoring and responsible publication of research, will be discussed on the 3rd of October in the event organized by Vilnius University, „Shaping a Culture of Research Integrity“. Invited speakers from different universities are facing various aspects of Research Integrity in their daily work and are willing to share their experience and advice.

Applied chemistry studies, conducting research and attending conferences, involvement in Students’ Union projects and website development – these are just some of the daily activities of Kaunas University of Technology (KTU) GIFTed student Aistis Melnikas. While active since childhood, Aistis admits that balancing so many things is a challenge, but his formula for success is quite simple – proper time management helps to accomplish more.