From vision to action: How TalTech plans to match Aalto and KTH

Tallinn University of Technology has begun drawing up a new development plan that will set its focus and goals for the coming decade. Vice-Rector for Entrepreneurship, Erik Puura, emphasises that a development plan is not merely a document but a shared agreement on the university’s future direction — how to strengthen engineering education, research, and collaboration with businesses so that TalTech becomes as influential a university of technology as Aalto in Finland or KTH in Sweden. Trialoog spoke with Puura about these plans in more detail.

Development plan or intuition – what is the difference between a university led by the heart and one led by a strategy?

Naturally, a university must be guided by the heart. Yet it faces many choices about which direction to take, and such decisions cannot be made by the rector or the rectorate alone. To be concrete: how should we serve society and strengthen collaboration with businesses? Should we expand or be content with our current position? How can we meet the rapidly changing needs of society and entrepreneurs? How do we harness technological progress, particularly the opportunities brought by artificial intelligence?

These and many other questions require the involvement, consensus, and clear planning of the entire university community. The development plan records those decisions — but equally important is the process itself, which is now entering a more intensive phase as the community becomes more engaged.

What are the main principles behind TalTech’s new development plan?

We have excellent examples among the EuroTeQ universities, especially the technical universities of Denmark, Eindhoven, and Munich — as well as Aalto University and KTH in Stockholm. We are already a recognised and sought-after partner, but reaching their level will take time. One key conclusion follows: Estonia does not need two classical universities, but rather one classical and one technical university — and that technical university should be just as strong as the classical one. As in Finland, where Helsinki University complements Aalto, or in Sweden, where Uppsala pairs with KTH.

In larger countries, such a division of roles is often regional. Estonia is small, which makes the location of the classical university in Tartu and the technical university in Tallinn an ideal setup.

This article was first published on 17 October by TalTech.