In December 2025, colleagues from Kyiv School of Economics (Kostyantyn Kyrychenko, Lyubov Zinyuk, Olha Fedoryshyn, Yuliia Rutkova, Krystyna Shechkova, Iryna Sydorenko, Viktoria Berzenina, and Kateryna Kiselova) visited the Grant Office of the University of Tartu. The visit took place within the framework of the BRIDGE project. Its purpose was to strengthen the team’s project management expertise and gain first-hand insight into the operations of one of the region’s most successful university grant offices.

Over four days, KSE grant writers, project managers, and financial managers explored the structure of Tartu’s Grant Office, proposal preparation processes, digital tools, and financial and legal procedures.

The colleagues reviewed the full lifecycle of preparing a high-quality grant proposal — from identifying funding opportunities to planning roles and coordination between research support consultants and academic staff. They also discussed applications to international funding programs, including Horizon Europe and the European Research Council (ERC). The team compared the approaches of the University of Tartu and KSE, identifying practices that can be adapted to further enhance KSE’s internal processes.

KSE representatives also visited the Institute of Genomics, where they learned about the internal tools used by Tartu’s specialists — including digital funding search platforms and systems for team communication and coordination.

The visit concluded with a meeting between Kostyantyn Kyrychenko, Vice-Rector for International Cooperation at KSE, his colleagues, and the team of the Office of International Cooperation and Protocol, which coordinates Erasmus+ mobility programs. Together with Vice Rectors Aune Valk and Mari Moora, they discussed opportunities for further collaboration — including joint research initiatives, participation in Horizon Europe calls, academic mobility, and the launch of summer schools for students. 

The next stage of cooperation will involve continued mentorship and support for the team in preparing grant applications and implementing future initiatives. We sincerely thank our colleagues at the University of Tartu for their mentorship, expertise, and support in strengthening our teams’ capacity to develop and manage international projects.