Оломоуц университеті: тарихы мен қазіргі жағдайы

Czech university

Palacký University Olomouc is the oldest university in Moravia and the second oldest in the Czech Republic. It was established in 1573 as a public university led by the Jesuit order in Olomouc, which was at that time the capital of Moravia and the seat of the episcopacy. At first it taught only theology, but soon the fields of philosophy, law and medicine were added. After the Bohemian King Joseph II's reforms in the 1770s the university became increasingly state directed, and today it is a public university. During the Revolution of 1848 university students and professors played an active role on the side of democratisation. The conservative king Francis Joseph I closed most of its faculties during the 1850s, but they were reopened by an act of the Interim National Assembly passed on 21 February 1946. This act also extended the name from University of Olomouc to Palacký University Olomouc, after František Palacký, a 19th century Moravian historian and politician. The city of Olomouc has the highest density of university students in Central Europe, with around 25,000 university students (including those at Moravian College Olomouc), compared to a population of 100,000 inhabitants. Notable people who have taught, worked and studied at the university include Albrecht von Wallenstein and Gregor Mendel.

The university is the oldest in Moravia and the second oldest in the Czech Crown lands. Its foundation was an important element of the Counter Reformation in Moravia, as the church of Rome began its fight back against Protestantism. Roughly 90% of the population of the Czech lands was already Protestant by the time the Habsburgs took over the throne in 1526. The Protestant Hussites were working for the provision of universal education, which was a particular challenge for the Catholics. By the middle of the century there was not a single town without a Protestant school in the Czech lands, and many had more than one, mostly with two to six teachers each. In Jihlava, a principal Protestant center in Moravia, there were six schools: two Czech, two German, one for girls and one teaching in Latin, which was at the level of a high / grammar school, lecturing on Latin, Greek and Hebrew, Rhetorics, Dialectics, fundamentals of Philosophy and fine arts, as well as religion according to the Lutheran Augustana. With the University of Prague also firmly in hands of Protestants, the local Catholic church was unable to compete in the field of education. Therefore, the Jesuits were invited, with the backing of the Catholic Habsburg rulers, to come to the Czech lands and establish a number of Catholic educational institutions, foremost the Academy in Prague and the one in Olomouc. The Olomouc bishop Vilém Prusinovský z Víckova invited the Jesuits to Olomouc in 1566. The Jesuits established a monastery, and then progressively established the Gymnasium (school) , the academy, the Priest Seminary, and the Seminary of St. Francis Xavier For Poor Students. The college was promoted to university status in 1573, and thence the Collegium Nordicum and the Academy of Nobility were established. The university was closed during plagues in 1599 and 1623, and during the Bohemian Revolt in the Thirty Years' War. It was ransacked by the Swedish Empire's armies. In the Counter Reformation and succeeding decades, it became significantly influential as the Jesuit grip loosened. In 1773, after the dissolution of the Jesuit order, it was turned into a secular institution run by the State. In the end, it was separated from the Olomouc episcopal institutions and relocated to Brno in 1778. It returned to Olomouc four years later, its status downgraded to that of a lyceum. In 1827 it once again was promoted to University status. The short life of this renamed "Francis University" (Franzens Universität Olmütz, 1827 – 1860) perhaps eclipses its high scientific standard (especially in natural sciences, law and medicine) and its political importance, particularly in the "Springtime of Peoples" during the Revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas, when it became the centre of the struggle for national revival in Moravia. The Habsburg régime retaliated by closing most of the university in the 1850s. Olomouc's university was fully re established in 1946, inaugurating the modern era of the university.

The Palacký University has eight faculties. These faculties are Theology, Arts, Law, Medicine and Dentistry, Education, Science, Physical Culture, and Health Sciences (in historical order). There is no faculty of technology, as there are three technological universities within about hour's drive from Olomouc (Technical University in Ostrava to the North, University of Technology in Brno to the South and Tomáš Baťa University in Zlín to the East).

The Faculty of Theology is the oldest one, being there already in 1573 when the Olomouc College was promoted to the university. It was perceived by the Czech Protestant population as the core symbol of recatholization forced by Habsburgs, which led to the Jesuits being driven out of Olomouc at the beginning of the Bohemian Revolt and whole university being closed in the years 1618–1621. The Faculty of Theology continued to have university privileges, including the right to award university degrees even when the university itself was downgraded to Lyceum in the years 1782–1827. Following the Habsburg repression of the university in 1860, it was the only functioning faculty up until the re establishment of the whole University in 1946, together with the University Library safeguarding the continuation between the old and re established University of Olomouc. As the Czech Republic has one of the least religious populations in the world, the Catholic Church faces lack of Czechs interested in being ordinated as priests. Shortages of Czech priest students and priests both generally and at the Faculty of Theology are balanced by their importation from other countries, foremost from Poland.

The Faculty of Arts (Faculty of Liberal Arts in the traditional sense) was established three years after the Olomouc College got University rights. Englishman George Warr professed the first lecture on logics on 3 October 1576. From the beginning it was teaching the liberal arts, the Trivium (grammar, rhetoric, dialectics) which led to the Baccalaureus degree, and the Quadrivium (arithmetic, music, geometry and astronomy) which led to the Magister degree. Sharing the fate of Theological faculty in years 1618–1621, it saw a great revival with not so much the field of philosophy, but the fields of science, mathematics, physics, astronomy, cartography and finally also genetics being pursued by notable persons connected to the faculty (however these fields are today read at the Faculty of Science). Following the Olomouc University students' participation in 1848 revolution the Faculty of Philosophy was the first one to be suppressed by the Habsburgs in 1851. It was reestablished in 1946. With 1953 establishment of the School of Education of Olomouc the Palacký University Faculty of Philosophy was dissolved until being reopened in 1958. As of 2021, students can study more than 600 combinations of subjects in the large spectrum of humanities, social sciences, linguistics and arts integration. Some may be studied by distance education, and others are also offered as lifelong learning. The Faculty of Arts offers bachelor's and master's degrees in Philology of Chinese, Czech, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Ukrainian. In the field of languages it further offers degrees on English, French, Dutch, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian and Japanese, all of them with specialization in Applied economics. There are further studies of history, Musicology, Psychology, the Theory and History of the Dramatic Arts, the Theory and History of the Visual Arts, Political Science and European Studies, Euroculture as Erasmus Mundus programme, Adult Education, Philosophy, Sociology, Archives Keeping, Journalism, Social sciences, Jewish Studies and many of other programmes. Students who plan to teach at secondary schools can obtain the required qualifications by passing courses in pedagogy and psychology during the late part of their study. The Faculty offers doctoral studies in Czech, Czech literature, French Literature, Romance languages, German, German literature, English and American literature, English, Russian, Polish, Czech history and Slovak history, general history, auxiliary historical sciences, political science, philosophy, sociology, clinical psychology, educational psychology, andragogy, theory of literature, theory and history of literature, theatre and film, theory and history of fine arts, theory and history of music. The Centre for Distance Learning, together with other departments, offers a wide range of activities for the general public (e. g. courses of graphology, courses for social workers, etc.). The Faculty also provides courses for international students, such as the long running Summer School of Slavonic Studies. In 2020, the faculty had students. The first Olomouc professor of law was Karel Ferdinand Irmler. The secular legal studies faced very strong opposition from the Jesuits: initially the professors taught at private premises, while later the lectures were held at the Olomouc Court of Law. Large number of Emperors' interventions was needed to secure continuation of legal studies in following decades. Since 1709 the Olomouc University law professors were appointed directly by the Emperor, in 1714 the Jesuits were forced to accept secular legal lectures within the university grounds. The situation improved after establishment of the Academy of Nobility in 1725 (law professors taught at both the university and academy). In 1732 Olomouc became the first law school in the Habsburg monarchy to teach Fief and Public law at an independent department. Later, in 1755, the lectures were extended to cover also international and natural law. In 1766 the first non Jesuit University Rector was appointed – the professor of law Johann Heinrich Bösenselle. In the 1760s the Olomouc law school became the centre of the Enlightenment in the Habsburg monarchy with professor Josef Vratislav Monse as its most important figure facing very strong opposition of the Jesuits. In 1778 the Professorate was elevated to Directorate, and it officially became fully fledged Faculty of Law in 1784, entering its best era before 1848 Revolution. The professors and students of law were the main force of the Revolution in Olomouc. Being forced to shut down by the Habsburg régime at the beginning of study year 1855/1856, it was re established by the Olomouc University Restoration Act of 1946, however in fact the faculty could be reopened only following the Velvet Revolution, in 1991. In its new era, the faculty became one of the pioneers of clinical legal education in the Continental Europe. In 1996 it was the first law school in Central Europe to introduce legal clinics and even now it is the only faculty in the Czech Republic that provides to its students wide range of clinical education. The clinics were quickly expanded and improved, especially after 2006 thanks to a project to advance practical education, which gained financial support from both the Czech national budget and from the European Social Fund. In 2011 there were more than 15 clinical subjects. The Faculty offers four programmes: a five year long master's degree in Law and Legal Theory, a three year long Bachelor's degree in Legal specialisation aimed at public administration workers, a two year long postgraduate master's degree in European studies with focus on European law (offered also as double degree with University of Salzburg Faculty of Law) and a doctorate in Theoretical legal science. The Juris Utrisque Doctor degree (JUDr.) may be also obtained. In 2020, the faculty had 1,663 students.

Medical lectures started in 1753 at the Faculty of Philosophy. As the university was relocated to Brno in 1778, the Department of Surgery was established by the Faculty of Philosophy. This department in 1782 became the university's Department of Surgery. was constructed. The Institute focuses on basic and translational biomedical research with an aim to better understand the underlying cause of human infectious diseases and cancer, and to develop future human medicines, medical devices and diagnostics. The faculty's long term research and development focuses on four fields: oncology, heart disease and vein disorders, experimental toxicology and pharmacology, and organ transplants. The research teams focus on molecular biology, immunology and epidemiology. In 2019, the faculty had 2,312 students.

While other faculties were reestablished by the Olomouc University Restoration Act of 21 February 1946, the Faculty of Education was established by a separate act of April 1946: after a 1945 Beneš decree the interim Czechoslovak parliament passed the law which created educational faculties in existing universities (the ones in other universities were closed by the German occupiers in 1939). Being established 1946 the Faculty of Education was educating future teachers of kindergarten and primary and secondary schools, as well as providing courses for those already teaching. Education of prospective secondary school teachers was done jointly with the Faculty of Philosophy (in the fields of music, drawing and physical arts). The year 1953 brought complete reform of teacher training methods. The faculty became the base for the newly established School of Education (separate from the university), so between 1954 and 1964 the faculty in its former sense did not exist. Teacher training for kindergartens and the first four years of primary education was conducted by the universities, while prospective teachers of years 5−8 of primary schools were educated in specialist higher schools (there was none of this type in Olomouc). In 1960 the so called "educational institutes" were established to educate prospective primary school teachers. Another reform of 1964 transformed these institutes into faculties of education and integrated them into the existing universities. This opened the current period of the faculty's history. Since 1990 the faculty has specialised foremost in education of prospective primary and secondary school teachers. The Faculty of Education provides tertiary education to prospective teachers of kindergartens, grammar schools, secondary schools and other pedagogical and educational establishments. It also educates public employees of both the government and quango sectors. The faculty offers bachelor's degrees, master's degrees and Doctorates of Philosophy, as well as appointing professors. In 2019, the faculty had 4,931 students. In 2019, the faculty had 821 students. There are several University buildings provided for these activities. The University Sports Hall meets Olympic Games requirements for volleyball, basketball and handball matches. The whole complex of outdoor sports grounds together with the university docks appertain to the hall. Another gymnasium is at the buildings of the Faculty of Physical Culture (on the Neředín campus), and another is next to the Olomouc Hockey Stadium. Others are within halls of residence. Most University buildings have free Wi Fi, while nearly every dormitory room has a high speed wired LAN connection.

The library was established as the Jesuits were invited to Olomouc in 1566 to take control over the Olomouc College. Its bookstock consisted primarily of donations from bishops and noblemen. Particular generosity was shown by Vilém Prusinovský z Víckova, the Bishop of Olomouc, who gave the college to the Jesuits and allowed them to take for it any Greek or Latin books from the episcopal library. The Swedish occupation of Olomouc from 1642 to 1650 led to total ruination of the library. Everything that had any value was stolen (including codices made under the patronage of the Bishop of Olomouc Jindřich Zdíka), while the rest was destroyed. Altogether some 100 wagons fully loaded with books and scripts were dispatched to Sweden. As a result, Olomouc University's most precious relics are now in the National Library of Sweden in Stockholm. The library was nevertheless restored relatively rapidly after the Swedes left. Under the Jesuits the library was open only to the university's lecturers and students. Following the dissolution of the order in 1773 it was reconstituted as the Public University Library, with the stress on more widely shared access. At the same time library funds from Moravian Jesuit Colleges that had been closed down were transferred to Olomouc University Library. Later on, funds from dissolved monasteries also found their way into the same budget. The library continued in operation, together with the Faculty of Theology, after the university was closed down in 1860: this has ensured some continuity between the old and re established universities in Olomouc. The Armoury was used by the military until 1989 (the Czech Army Joint Forces still have their headquasters in Olomouc today). After the Velvet Revolution, the armoury became the property of the university: it was then decided to accommodate the information centre in it. However, the building was in very poor condition and needed extensive reconstruction. Reconstruction started in 1992 and in 1997 the Central Library opened. However, it was not until 2000 that the building works were finished and the whole building could be opened. The Central Library occupies about half of the Armoury, while the rest is occupied by the Centre for Information Technologies, the University Press, the University Archive and the Eurocentre.

The Saints Cyril and Methodius Faculty of Theology and the Faculties of Medicine and Dentistry, Science, Education, Physical Culture, Law, and Health Sciences each have their own libraries; the Faculty of Education's is called the Study Hall. The British Centre Library is housed on the university grounds and run by the British Council.

The University Project Service is an information and consultancy centre which assists those wishing to obtain grants and donations. It also manages administrative and financial aspects of given projects and it lectures on the topic.

The university offers year round accommodation and dining facilities for students and university employees, as well as for the general public when there is spare capacity. Especially during the summer months, when most students vacate dormitories, it offers accommodation and boarding for both individual tourists and large groups (conferences, sports championships, and so on). The dormitories have more than beds, while the boarding services are used by more than people daily. Most of the dormitories are either close to the city centre (by the new Faculty of Science building) or on the outskirts, at the Neředín campus of the Faculty of Physical Culture, with some buildings in other parts of town.

Palacký University Press has been publishing academic literature since the beginning of 1990s. It publishes more than 200 new titles every year. It focuses on specialized monographies, medical publications, textbooks as well as extensive pictorial publications regarding the fields of history, art history and photography. It also publishes various peer reviewed journals, most of them in electronic and Open Access form.

The Confucius Institute provides Chinese schooling. It follows in the footsteps of Karel Slavíček (1678–1735), alumnus of the Faculty of Philosophy, who was the first Czech sinologist. He wrote a treatise on Chinese music and was also the author of the first precise map of Beijing.

There are three basic types of university with different level of state control in the Czech Republic. All of them need state accreditation to award university degrees. Public Universities are financed mostly by the state, yet are independent and self governed. State Universities have very limited self governance, typically they are not even legal personalities, formally they are components of state administration units. There are only two of them in the Czech republic – the Universities of the Ministries of Defence and of the Interior
Private Universities need only accreditation, otherwise they are free from state control, as well as from state financing. Czech universities have a long tradition of self governance and independence from state interference, which goes back to the Middle Ages. Today, self governance is assured by the University Education Act No. 111/1998 The following governance bodies are similar for all Czech public universities.

The Administrative Council approves some of the university deeds (real estate transactions, establishing other legal personalities for the university, the transfer of money or property between them, and so on) and it gives its opinion on the university budget, long term University objectives, and so on. Members are appointed by the Minister of Education (after discussion with the rector) for a period of six years; one third of the council is appointed every two years. Members represent the general public, municipal and regional authorities as well as state administration. University employees cannot be Council members. Sessions take place at least twice a year. Election of the chairman, vice chairman and rules of procedure are set by the University Statute

Among the fifteen members of Palacký University Administrative Council are Jan Březina MEP, Archbishop of Olomouc Jan Graubner, and Olomouc Region Governor Martin Tesařík.

The bursar is responsible for the management and administration of the university and also represents the university to the extent determined by the rector, who appoints and revokes the bursar.

The faculties are parts of the university. Only the university as a whole is a legal personality. Nevertheless, the internal affairs of faculties are run by their respective self governing bodies, which have similar rules and functions as those at the university level. Each faculty therefore has a faculty senate (also with students' and lecturers' curia), which among other things nominates the Dean (appointed by the rector). As mentioned before, disciplinary misdemeanours are tried by the faculty disciplinary commissions, while issues concerning study programmes are dealt with by the faculty scientific boards. Each faculty has a secretary instead of a bursar.