Programs, Clubs and Projects
Start FM
During the reference period, the radio was headed by Rimantas Murza.
VU Radio START FM is a radio station of VU SR and Vilnius University, which started its activities in 2005. The only student radio station in Lithuania provides wide opportunities for self-expression for students: it helps to prepare future journalists, programmers and specialists in other fields. START FM also actively supports the dissemination of the works of young and little-known Lithuanian and foreign performers and music groups, conducts interviews with alternative music performers, supports various artistic and social initiatives.
Between 2021 and 2022, an average of 48 hours of original programming were broadcast per week (the next part of the program consists of automatic music play), while an average of 42,000 unique listeners per month tuned in online.
Growth did not stop in the development of cooperation – joint projects with the Lithuanian Interdisciplinary Artists' Union, contemporary serious music festival Druskomanija, informal music creative school Muzikalkė, radio theatre No tickets were started (the studio recorded and broadcast on VU radio in the Northern Town, in the competition Pragiedruliai organized by the Lithuanian Radio and Television Commission. Recognized as the most original radio show). A 3-minute solo project was also carried out, during which 32 young Lithuanian jazz instrumentalists performing 3-minute solo performances were professionally filmed and recorded. At the beginning of autumn, the START FM news team, formed from VU students, prepares news reports, reports on topical topics and interviews every working day.
VU Debate Club
During the reference period, the activities of the club were coordinated by Robertas Remeika.
VU Debate club – a club, established 2004, to promote communication between students representing different faculties, to provide space to develop critical thinking, reasoning, English and public speaking skills, and to represent the Vilnius University in tournaments.
In 2019 the club was inactive, but this year the enterprising group of students gathered and was actively preparing for the return of the club. First, the qualifications were raised and the search and selection process was carried out in the process of creating the final council. Secondly, after the preliminary creation of the Council, weekly meetings were held to raise qualifications and a general decision on the future of VU Debate club, activities and technical issues. Thirdly, after the necessary qualifications have been achieved, the council and the activities of the Debate Society have been finally formed, and in cooperation with the VU Students' Representative Office (a logo was created, organizational and technical issues were solved, and the marketing activities carried out and etc.) was prepared for the opening of the Society. Other non-profit debate organizations, such as The Youth Debate, has also cooperated on this issue. Finally, the VU Debate Society was successfully opened at the first public event held on 21st of April, 2022.
SMMS
During the reference period, the project activities were coordinated by Urtė Marija Kasnikauskaitė.
Students - for pupils, pupils - for students (SMMS) – three-day camp is organized by VU SR for students of older classes who want to get acquainted with student life and study opportunities. This year, the camp was organized face-to-face – due to the prevailing pandemic situation in Lithuania, this project was transferred to Discord platform for two years in a row. This year's SMMS camp took place at the General Jonas Zemaitis Military Academy of Lithuania, with which we have been cooperating for several years. It is very interesting that in such circumstances the project managed to attract more than 100 students from all over Lithuania and give them the opportunity to see Vilnius University, its activities and, together with the curators-students, to feel true students in the chosen academic core units for at least a day. This year, students were able to get acquainted not only with the studies conducted at University, but also with the possibilities of self-expression – programs, clubs and projects.
Vilnius University Law Clinic (VU LC)
During the reference period, VU LC was headed by Viktorija Medžiaušaitė
Vilnius University Law Clinic, established by VU SR and its partners, is a free legal aid project that provides a real professional practice opportunity for senior course law students, and offers free legal aid to the public and promotes legal literacy. VU LC was established 24 years ago and is still under the auspices of VU SR, Vilnius University and law firm Ellex Valiūnas.
In 2021, the organization provided legal aid to 6,449 residents. Based on the feedback from interested parties about the quality of the organization's activities, it can be concluded that VU Legal Clinic ensures a sufficiently high level of competence and a good service culture. In 2021, consultations were successfully conducted by phone, Skype, e-mail. With the pandemic situation, live consultations have resumed in accordance with all safety measures.
During the reference period, 28 students of Vilnius University performed compulsory professional or voluntary practice at VU LC, the total duration of which is 6 months. During the internship, students advised interested persons on family, inheritance, work, intellectual property, contracts, real estate, consumers, administrative, criminal law issues. He also prepared draft contracts, draft procedural documents for judicial institutions (courts, labor disputes commissions), legal conclusions.
Vilnius University Legal Clinic actively cooperated with the mass media, regularly provided legal comments to the most popular portals lrt.lt, 15min.lt, teise.pro, participated in a radio show ("Radio case"). 11 publications have been prepared on topics such as: "Peculiarities of criminal liability for bribery"; "An accident while working remotely - whose responsibility is it?" "Communication with a child is a right and a duty"; "Can an employer terminate an employment contract when it is not the employee's fault?"; "Inheritance - what to do if you lose a spouse?" "The right of a person to an image: when is a person's photo published illegally?" etc.
Together with the Vilnius University Students' Representative, training has been prepared for students on the topic of the fundamentals of labor law, which are publicly available to students of Vilnius University.
The consultants of the legal clinic participated in the project "Do not disturb" of Vilnius Salomėja Neris Gymnasium. During this project, general provisions on the protection of personal data were presented to all senior students. Cooperation has been established with the Vilnius Social Club on the provision of legal assistance to young people and with the Missing Persons Families Support Centre on the provision of legal assistance to victims of trafficking in human beings, domestic violence, relatives of missing persons.
Vilnius University Student Investment Fund (VU SIF)
During the reporting period, the fund was managed by Ieva Turskytė (until January, 2022) bei Gabrielė Stanionytė (from January, 2022).
Vilnius University Student Investment Fund (VU SIF) is the first and largest student investment fund in Lithuania established by VU SR, encouraging young people to take an interest in the world of investment management and invest independently.
During the reference period, VU SIF successfully organized informative events. On the 25th of December, 2021, a lecture "The biggest myths of investment portfolio management" was held with Tautvydas Marčiulaitis, followed by a lecture with economist Greta Krušaitė on personal finances "Accumulate, spend or invest?". Also, on 4th of May, in cooperation with VU Young Energetics Club, a discussion "Green Energy in Lithuania, Development and Investment Prospects" was organized, which was attended by Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania Arnoldas Pranckevičius, Vice-Minister of Energy Daiva Garbaliauskaitė, energy supply companies "Ignitis group" innovation expert Vincentas Vitkauskas and Rokas Bancevičius, finance director of the renewable energy company "Green Genius".
During the reference period, a new team of VU SIF organized as many as 6 events. The first event on inflation took place in December, 2021, where Indrė Genytė-Pikčienė and Marius Dubnikovas shared their observations. In cooperation with VU SR FEBA, a series of 3 lectures and a brainstorm "Investment ABC: where to start?" were organized in order to help young people take their first successful steps in investing. In the next event "Sanctions against Russia. What impact will this have on us and the economy?" Paulius Kunčinas reviewed the current issues in the event of an emergency in the world. In addition, a podcast was launched on the new VU SIF YouTube channel with Vilius Oškeliūnas.
The members of the VU SIF team participated in most of the trainings, during which they learned a number of new things that they applied in the activities of the organization and participated in a mentoring program, which promoted the growth, development and communication of members with former representatives of VU SIF.
Magazine "Investuok", UAB Gaudera, The Bank of Lithuania, UAB Gerovės valdymas, IFSA, Vilnius University Students' Representation, Vilnius University Business School and Vilnius University has helped to grow and improve during the reference period to the VU SIF.
Vilnius University Career Days
During the reference period, the project was coordinated by Eglė Jašinskaitė
Vilnius University Career Days is a project of VU SR that allows students to get acquainted with potential employers, make contacts and start a career path independently. The project aims to help students establish themselves in the labor market and become in-demand specialists in their field.
This year's main event VU Career Days 2022 was organized on March 21st - 24th, and on February 22nd and March 3rd, VU Career Day was held at Kaunas Faculty and VU Career Day at Šiauliai Academy. During the implementation of the project, 76 companies and financial sponsors were found. 4 additional events were also organized, during which various topics related to careers were discussed. A team of 111 managers, members and volunteers who helped to ensure the smooth running of the entire project. The biggest changes of this year project are the organization of additional events, the inclusion of members during almost the entire reporting period and the organization of individual events of VU Career Days in VU academic core units that are located outside of Vilnius. The initiative that we are most proud of is the Hackathon, during which student teams had the opportunity to win a prize of as much as 4500 euros, established by FRANMAX.
Be etikečių
During the reference period, the activities of the program were coordinated by Julija Baublinskaitė.
"Be etikečių" - VU SR has been implementing a program active in the field of reduction of social exclusion and human rights since 2010. This program aims to promote respect in the VU community, break established stereotypes and increase the University's openness by promoting the full integration of socially vulnerable groups. The core values of the program are: equality, openness and respect for the individuality of each person.
This year, Be etikečių, was focused on individual socially vulnerable groups. 4 cycles of events and projects were organized: LGBTQ+ Culture Festival Kultūra visų, Feminism Week, Disability Week and Ethnic Minority Month. Each of these thematic cycles was aimed at delving into the experiences of the group represented in it, to introduce both its achievements and problems, to provide a platform for the representatives(s) of that group to talk about the aspects of everyday life and activism that are important to them and them. The traditions of the program were also continued: in September Be etikečių marched at the Lithuanian LGBTQ+ pride march, held for the first time in Kaunas; for the fourth time Halloween was celebrated in the debate on the stigmatization of psychological disorders in Halofobija; continuing the long-standing cooperation with the University's LGBT+ group, a discussion was held on the situation of LGBTQ+ rights in Lithuania and Europe.
In 2021, the program's style book was updated and communication on social media was changed accordingly: the transition was made from educational content for people who are not exposed to almost completely socially vulnerable groups, to deeper texts that require a certain previous acquaintance with the topic presented from the audience, as well as an effort was made to respond meaningfully to current issues. A series of recordings #KulturaVisu was continued, presenting to readers artists from socially vulnerable groups of different directions, and it was supplemented by a new project #DragZodynelis, the recordings of which introduce the terms and history of drag culture.
VU JEK
During the reference period, the activities were coordinated by Klaudija Pukalskaitė
Vilnius University Young Energetics Club (VU JEK) - VU SR club, uniting young people interested in various types of energy, economic, political and technical aspects. VU JEK members share their energy knowledge by organizing events and disseminating information.
The most important activities of the club this year can be considered cooperation, establishing contacts with companies and participation in activities and events organized by other organizations and divisions.
This year, many first-year students of various study programs were attracted to the club, and the events attracted public interest. The club focuses on larger projects and has begun to implement them. One such project is the VU JEK board game or the second issue of Progressus magazine. Also, this year, the club members had an exceptional opportunity to visit Antalieptė museum and renovate it during the trainings.
ESN VU
During the reference period, the program's activities were coordinated by Simonas Bendinskas
ESN Vilnius University is a VU SR program that promotes student mobility and helps foreign students to successfully integrate at Vilnius University. The main goal of ESN Vilnius University is to help foreign students coming to VU to adapt to a new environment, to introduce them to the study procedure, culture and traditions of our country.
ESN Vilnius University's activities were focused on organizing various events aimed at increasing the integration of foreign students and promoting community. As every semester, the activity was traditionally started with Orientation Week, during which efforts were made to introduce foreign students to each other and provide all the necessary information about the university's life, infrastructure, Lithuanian culture, students' opportunities and rights. Taking into account the pandemic situation, during the year students were provided with all the necessary and relevant information about covid-19 virus spread management routes in Lithuania, the restrictions and security measures applied. At the same time, students were also provided with contact information in case of infection with the disease.
Vilnius University Kendo Club
During the reporting period, the activities of the club were coordinated by Vytenis Almonaitis.
Vilnius University Kendo Club is a Japanese fencing studio of VU SR, which has been operating since 2008, designed for both beginners and those who want to improve their already existing skills. Kendo Club seeks not only to promote kendo sports and promote active lifestyle, but also to bring together students interested in Japanese martial arts, to promote the name of Vilnius University in Lithuania and the world by participating in competitions and other events.
During the reference period, the club participated in a contact fair for freshmen. Due to the pandemic situation in the country, the club, in compliance with safety requirements, was unable to conduct training and participate in competitions. Nevertheless, the studio representatives presented the possibilities of solo and paired training to their followers on social media and invited everyone to play sports.
Students' Life Guide (SGV)
During the reference period, the project was coordinated by Aurelija Vasiliauskaitė.
The Students' Life Guide (SGV) is a publication of VU SR designed to facilitate the beginning of the life of freshmen and students coming from abroad to Vilnius University to study in a new city (or country). The main goal of the SGV is to promote students' independence, activities and, of course, to ensure smooth integration into the ranks of the largest academic community in Lithuania. In order to achieve this goal as efficiently as possible, it is ensured that the publication reaches students no longer in the form of a book, but in the form of a website sgv.vusa.lt for the second year. For this reason, SGV can be not only a source of information at the beginning of the year, but also throughout the year of study, since in this publication you can find all the necessary information related to the most important processes, services and leisure time of the University.
VU Writers Club
During the reporting period, the activities of the club were coordinated by Nikolajus Elkana Eimutis.
VU Writers Club - a society uniting VU students who are writing and interested in literature was formed in 2013. The goal of the VU Writers Club is not only to bring together writers, but also to encourage more interest in literature, to look at it from the side of the creator, critic, reader and listener.
Members of the VU Writers Club organize open lectures on the most interesting literary movements and the most prominent creators of world and Lithuanian literature, organize reading events of their works, organize meetings with writers, organize reviews and discussions of films based on literary works, communicate with actors.
This year, the VU Writers Club paid a lot of attention to public education: since January, 2022, it was actively started to publish texts and visual material about various representatives of Lithuanian and world art fields, prominent personalities on the Instagram account, which was a great success. We started to share the works of Lithuanian poets in story format, we published more detailed essay articles on Facebook account. After the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, we translated and shared the works of Ukrainian poets on social networks every day, and in cooperation with the VU Young Journalists Organization, we read Ukrainian poetry during the debate. We also collaborated with the Be etikečių program to prepare and evaluate the competition Metamorphoses: the intersection of ethnic identities as a starting point for changes in society for students in grades 9-12.
HEMA
During the reference period, the activities of the club were coordinated by Gintarė Vaičekauskytė.
VU HEMA (Historical European Marchal Arts) club is a newly started and formed club. HEMA is a historical European martial arts, long sword trainings based on information from the textbooks of ancient masters. VU HEMA Club aims to provide an opportunity for students to practice and get acquainted with this martial art and encourages them to maintain physical activity.
During the reporting period, one of the most important tasks of the new club was to introduce students to HEMA and to the formation of new and already visiting members of the emerging community. This year HEMA attended and introduced the club at the Students - for pupils, pupils - for students (SMMS) camp.
VU Photography Club
During the reference period, VU Photography Club was coordinated by Gabija Raubaitė and Andranik Karagezian
The mission of VU Photography Club is to foster and mature the diversity and creativity of students through one of the most fascinating art directions – photography. However, this year we realized that our mission is also inseparable from constant cooperation with Vilnius University. We are happy to get the opportunity to provide photography services to such a wide variety of programs, clubs and projects and to be able to capture the stories of the University.
This year, our activities focused on 3 main areas: members, VU community and society.
We tried to create a community for club members, where both photographers, enthusiasts and advanced professionals interested in photography could spend time together and share experiences. During both semesters, we organized activities in groups where we carried out trainings and various practical classes. At the end of the fall semester, we organized our first live photography exhibition "Change" in the corridor of the VU Rectorate. For many members of the club, this was the first photography exhibition in which they were proud of their work. We also met for the first time with the members of Photography club alumni, from whom we took inspiration for further activities. We have repeatedly carried out activities dedicated to the members in two languages, involving foreign students interested in the club.
We have provided photography services to the VU community almost everywhere and always. As the spring semester draws to a close, we no longer even know where to put the photos captured during this year alone, because our storage is constantly filling up. As they say, "sharing is caring". Guided by this idea, we organized two open training courses on the basics of photography for the VU community.
After all, we have always tried to remain social and active in public. We have constantly recorded all sorts of shots – from the brightest public holidays to the most painful protests. We have remained indifferent and responsible together with the entire VU SR.
We thank Vilnius University and VU SR as a whole for their uninterrupted cooperation, close connection and opportunities to grow, act and thrive.
VU Antroclub
During the reference period, the activities of the club were coordinated by Ivan Trunov.
VU Antroklub is a community of members of the academic environment that are interested in anthropology and working in the field of anthropology.
This year, the club organized informal meetings of members, during which the club members were given the opportunity to discuss their own research and scientific activities. We filmed episodes of our podcast Second Conversations (you can find them on our Facebook page). There was also an event I'm Gay. I'm a lesbian. VU students' research on the topic of disclosure, which talked about the 2 social studies carried out.
Life Sciences Conference The COINS 2022
During the reference period, the activities were coordinated by Daniel Šematovič
Life Sciences Conference The COINS is a VU SR project organized by students. It is a scientific event aimed at promoting students' scientific activities, interest in the latest scientific achievements and expanding academic and professional ties. The conference invites top-level scholars to give presentations at our University, thus promoting it in the academic international community. In the same way, we seek to educate students and the public about scientific news, to allow access to life sciences research, thus encouraging them to choose their professional path in this particular field.
The (Extra)ordinary COINS 2021 conference took place on February 27, 2021, online, during which lectures were given by prof. V. Šikšnys and Dr. G. Olendraitė during this conference. The conference bench presentation session took place online on 30th of March 2021 and attracted up to 90 speakers. In 2021, two events for students were organized: bench presentations and article writing workshops, the latter attracted a lot of interest and attracted more than 150 participants.
The COINS 2022 conference, which was organized this year, took place online from 28th of February to 3rd of March. A team of almost 40 organizers was formed to ensure that the preparation and all the activities of the conference went smoothly. The conference was attended by 130 people a day, and a record number of student bench presentations were achieved – 125. Lectures were given by 13 top-level lecturers from abroad on neurobiology, astrobiology, bioinformatics, protein and genetic engineering, cell biology, including 2016 Nobel Prize winner in chemistry Sir Fraser Stoddart. During the conference, 3 discussions were held on the topics of promotion of students' scientific activities, biostarters and tissue engineering. Also, a program with laboratory work and lectures for students was organized and attracted 120 students from various Lithuanian schools.
Vilnius University Society of Young Journalists
During the reference period, the activities of the society were coordinated by Gabija Strumylaitė
28th of August 2021 – the first inaugural meeting of VU JŽD. Since September the Society has started to carry out active organization creation activities that unite students from all over Lithuania.
On October 2021 the Society has begun cooperation with the editorial board of the "15min" news site. The members of VU JŽD write texts on various topics, take photos and videos, and their works are published with a special tag of the Society of Young Journalists of Vilnius University https://www.15min.lt/gyvenimas/naujiena/augintiniai/sunu-vedle-migle-kazenaite-man-parodos-svarbios-ne-tik-del-pasiekimu-1036-1578142.
VU JŽD invites everyone who wants to come to various public events organized by the society members. On 18th of October 2021, an event with journalists Rita Miliūtė and Rytis Zemkauskas was held at the Vilnius University Faculty of History. Edmundas Jakilaitis and Alfredas Bumblauskas, the initiators of the LRT National Expedition, told more about it. On March 14th, the VU Faculty of Communication held a discussion "Ukraine and Russia: how far do the roots of (non)consensus go?" with Dr. Grigory Potashenko and Doc. Dr. Česlovas Laurinavičius. We worked together on these events with other VU PCP – VU Photography Club, VU Writers' Club.
During formal and informal sessions, the society pays attention to the comprehensive personal development of its members. On 20th of November 2021 The Faculty of Communication held a creative workshop with an expert on communication Sandra Galdikaitė. Online lectures-meetings with professional journalists were organized (lecture "ABC of article writing" on 1st of March 2022 with 15min journalist Violeta Grigaliūnaitė, meeting with LRT foreign news journalist Benas Gerdžiūnas on 17th of March 2022).
In 2022, we aim to establish a prize for young journalists. For this purpose, we cooperate with the organizers of the Romas Sakadolskis, Academic Journalism Forum. We have already discussed the first possible regulations for the upcoming competition. We would aim to involve as many Lithuanian educational institutions, journalistic circles as possible and young people interested in individual journalism in the project. The information partners have already agreed to be "15min".
In response to the war in Ukraine initiated by Russia, since March we have become one of the first suukraina.lt partners of the "Laisvės TV" project. A team of 10 VU JŽD members is working on filling in the data on the website. They search for information about events, organizations that provide assistance, opportunities to donate things or money, check sources that announce news about the war, and help to find answers to the questions that visitors to the page.
VU JŽD seeks to open up the widest possible range of opportunities for its members, therefore, we cooperate extensively and openly with journalism centers, professional journalists working in editorial offices or individually, experts operating in the interdisciplinary field. We constantly receive offers to come to events of other organizations, to get involved in projects of various genres. For example, in April 2022, our member Ūla Klimaševska contributed to the journalistic investigation "Jonas and the General: What Links Jonas Pinskus and Russia" conducted by the Centre for Investigative Journalism "Siena". Reference: https://www.siena.lt/news/jonas-ir-generolas-kas-sieja-jona-pinsku-ir-rusija?fbclid=IwAR3ccf0A16JX-6vWs1CN2qSlz_uNd8XMs9AbxC_mvL5ZSGeoHERBBDKJsYM
We constantly think and plan the future activities of the organization, try to listen as much as possible to the needs of VU JŽD members. In the near future, we will pay more attention to the deeper integration of members, strengthening of the interconnectedness (in May, mind battle, other social type events are organized), we will try to reach more creative Lithuanian schoolchildren who can reveal their potential within the framework of the organization. A creative camp is planned for summer-autumn, we are already considering the autumn season discussions and public events on the most relevant topics with people operating in Lithuania and the international space. We will continue to carry out the organization of the Prize with the most professional journalists in the country.
New initiatives
During the reference period, the aim was to significantly expand and increase the network of student initiatives. To achieve this goal, a "hackVU" event was organized, during which several new initiatives were added to our community. The first steps were also started by several other initiatives – mind battles, music club.
Charity and support fund "Ateičiai"
Vilnius University Students' Representation founded the charity and support fund "Ateičiai", which is dedicated to the well-being of Vilnius University students. The foundation was established to represent the diverse needs of students.
During the reference period, the charity and support fund "Ateičiai", distributing merchandise in both physical and electronic stores, publicized and promoted the name of Vilnius University. This year, one-day pop-up shops were also organized in various academic core units of the University, and students were given the opportunity to purchase merch during the events taking place at the University. In addition, Fund is expanding cooperation with the University – a cooperation agreement has been signed with VU Museum on the sale of their products in the VU merchandise shop (postcards, magnets, etc.). This year the fund is also continues to collect 1.2% income tax support, which will be purposefully used for the integration into the University of Ukrainian students. The funds collected will be used to purchase the necessary household items, hygiene products or goods intended for the visiting students(s) and necessities to ensure the quality of a study process. Last year, support was also collected, and in the current situation in Ukraine, it was decided to allocate the collected support to the integration of Ukrainian students who had arrived into the VU community and to improve their living conditions in Lithuania.
The activities of the Charity and Support Fund "Ateičiai" are socially responsible and create capital for the benefit of the well-being of Vilnius University students.