Open Competition for University Fee Exemptions for Spring Semester

Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) has launched an open competition for university fee exemptions for spring semester of the academic year 2022/2023. The purpose of the competition is to achieve the mission of socially responsible university by reducing social exclusion, creating appropriate financial conditions for VMU students to be accommodated and (or) study (taking into account different social (material) situations, study results and (or) accommodation in the dormitory).

University fee exemptions for spring semester 2022/2023 may be granted at a rate of up to 100 % to cover:

TUITION FEES, and this exemption may be granted for students of a full-time bachelor, master, or integrated studies:

who are currently in a difficult social (financial) situation;
whose grades (taking into account credits) average for the last examination session (for first-year students – entrance competition score) is not lower than 8 (eight).

ACCOMMODATION FEES, and this exemption may be granted for students of a full-time bachelor, master, PhD or integrated studies, who are currently living in the dormitory of VMU and who have concluded Agreement for Accommodation, based on:

social (financial) situation;
dormitory and room type, where student is being accommodated (NOTE: students, who are currently living in a single-bedroom of the dormitory cannot be awarded accommodation fee exemption).

University fee exemptions through the open competition may be awarded as a matter of priority, by taking into account social (financial) status, for:

orphans, students who were granted custody or guardianship until adulthood or who have lost both of their parents (both of the parents have passed away);
students with disabilities;
students from the families with large number of children (there are four or more children in the family, who are currently students, school pupils or minors).

Given the social (material) status, students must provide following documents for the competition:

orphans: original documents of the death certificates of your mother and father, with official translations to Lithuanian, English or Russian languages with the translator’s stamp attached;
students with disabilities: original document, which proves your disability with official translations to Lithuanian, English or Russian languages with the translator’s stamp attached;
students from the families with large number of children:
- original certificate of family composition with official translations to Lithuanian, English or Russian languages with the translator’s stamp attached;
- original documents / certificates from kindergartens/schools/universities and others education institutions which proves student or school pupil status with official translations to Lithuanian, English or Russian languages with the translator’s stamp attached.

Students who are willing to apply for free exemptions, has to complete an electronic application form in Student self-service portal. How to do this?

log in to the VMU Student self-service portal using your personal login provided by the University;
select the Applications in the menu box and click on the Requests button;
select the application category Fees exemptions and compensations, click Tuition / Accommodation fee exemption by the means of competition (form F-006), complete the form, attach (upload) documents, which prove social (financial) status of the family, together with official translations to Lithuanian, English or Russian languages with the translator’s stamps attached and submit it.

Applications are open from January 30^th, 2023, to February 19th, 2023. Results of the open competition will be published by March 1st, 2023, by personally informing students about it by an email being sent to the VMU email address.

Tuition fee and accommodation fees exemptions shall be awarded by taking into account all the support granted for the student by VMU, awarded scholarships, granted exemptions and (or) size of the fees paid for the University and given the support and (or) scholarships awarded from the State budget funds, private legal or natural persons.

More information:

VMU AA students and employees have the opportunity to listen to the study subject “Econometrics” (Prof. Dr. Vesa Niskanen, Finland)

In the spring semester, the study subject “Econometrics” will be taught remotely to foreign bachelor students at the Faculty of Bioeconomy Development of Vytautas Magnus University Agricultural Academy (VDU AA). The lecturer is professor dr. Vesa Niskanen, University of Helsinki, Finland.
We invite VDU AA students and employees to listen to this study subject.
Lectures and exercises will be held on Fridays in a non-auditory environment: lectures at 11:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., exercises at 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
The study subject “Econometrics” is free of charge for VMU employees. Registration is required when filling out the application.

Contact:
VMU AA study administration coordinator
doc. dr. Rasa Čingienė
Phone +370 682 22 874
E-mail rasa.cingiene@vdu.lt

11th International Scientific Conference “Rural Development 2023: Bioeconomy for The Green Deal”

We kindly invite You to the 11th International Scientific Conference “RURAL DEVELOPMENT 2023: Bioeconomy for the Green Deal”, which will take place in Vytautas Magnus University Agriculture Academy (Lithuania), 26-28 September, 2023.
This conference is aimed at providing interdisciplinary scientific discussion, presenting new ideas for rural development processes in the context of Bioeconomy, Climate Change, Innovations and Social Progress.

The main topics of Conference sessions:

Agro-innovations and Food Technologies;
Biosystems Engineering and Environmental Integrity;
Multifunctional Approach for Sustainable Use of Bio-Resources;
Social Research for Sustainable Bioeconomy and Climate Change.

Business and Science Forum “Connecting the Dots: A Roadmap for Lithuanian Bioeconomy Development” will be held during the Conference.

Conference keywords: Innovations, Integrity, Bio-resources, Well-being.

Important dates and deadlines:

Until September 15th, 2023 – registration  (extended)
Until September 26th, 2023 – article submission (extended)
Until September 10th, 2023 – payment of participation fee
January, 2024 – publishing of the Conference proceedings

Participation fee	In person (EUR)	Online (EUR)
Authors until August 27th	250	170
Authors after August 27th	300	220
PhD students	125	100
Non-authors	150	Free of charge

Participation fee in person covers not only the Conference proceedings, but also coffee breaks, lunches and gala dinner. The costs of accommodation, cultural (social) programme and transport should be covered by the participants of the Conference.

Speakers of the conference pay the participation fee after receiving information about the confirmation of the topic of the presentation.

Certificates of participants will be sent by e-mail after the conference.

More information about the Conference
Online Registration on the Conference website.
Information for authors.

New design, more user-friendly Conference website: https://www.ruraldevelopment.lt/
Conference e-mail: rural.development@vdu.lt

This Conference starts a cycle of events dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Vytautas Magnus University Agriculture Academy.

The second international meeting of partners of Erasmus+ project MARIPET was held at VMU Agriculture Academy

Over three billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for their livelihoods. However, today we are seeing 30 percent of the world’s fish stocks overexploited. FAO estimates that total fish production is 179 million tonnes in 2018 and about 88 % of the mentioned amount was utilized for human consumption directly and the rest (12 %) was described as used for “non-food purposes” and “waste”. Reducing by-catch and discard is an important issue for fishery management. Not only ecological impacts on biodiversity but also economical losses are enormously tragic problems worldwide. More than 40 fish species are caught per operation in bottom-trawl fishing, especially in Mediterranean waters because of its multi-species fishery characteristics. Among these, species that are discarded for various reasons besides those that are evaluated commercially have a significant amount in the total catch. A large proportion of fisheries production (35 percent of the global harvest) is either lost or wasted.

For this, it is aimed to provide training on the possibilities of using discarded fishery products as pet food by bringing them to shore. MARIPET project intends to create an awareness to use discard products by captured-based fisheries into the pet food industry. Although fish meal and fish oil which are the most valuable feed ingredients in the fish feed industry have been produced by using discarded fishes, it needs still a huge amount of investment to create economically valuable products. By contrast, most of the discarded fishes can be used as “Biologically Appropriate Raw Food” (BARF).

The barf diet is obtained by blending foods that are useful and nutritious for cats and dogs in certain proportions. It means biologically suitable raw foods which is a diet that has been formulated considering the diet of cats and dogs in their evolutionary process. The main theme of MARIPET includes more than one value chain step from the marine environment to pet food plant and any single step can create a difference itself. an innovative 5-module training programme, a virtual dedicated environment with an online education kit, platforms for discard fisheries and pet food trainers/experts and pet food manufacturers/experts, and an e-book/guidebook on European Discard Fisheries and Pet Food Production will be developed. The training workshops and multiplier events in five countries will finalise the project activities.

The project was launched on February 28, 2022. On January 10-11, 2023 the second international meeting of project partners was held at Vytautas Magnus University (VMU). Project implementation issues and the creation of training programme modules were covered during the meeting.

The meeting participants visited the Aquaculture Centre at the VMU Agriculture Academy, where the centre’s director, lecturer Alvydas Žibas introduced the technologies used here, the scientific research being conducted, the fish species being cultivated, the daily challenges that arise, and expressed satisfaction with the centre’s accomplishments. The project’s achievements were reviewed with the chancellor of the VMU Agriculture Academy prof. dr. Astrida Miceikienė and the dean of the Faculty of Forestry and Ecology prof. dr. Vitas Marozas. The possibility of collaboration in arranging studies and performing scientific research was also addressed.

Tadas Laurinavičius, head of company “Baltic Facility Management’s” aquarium maintenance, introduced the project participants to the aquarium housed in PLC “Mega”. It is the largest and tallest aquarium in the Baltic countries and it is ranked in the top ten in the world. The aquarium is 10 metres high and 4 metres wide, with a length of 11 metres and a water capacity of 170,000 gallons. With more than 10 tonnes of salt dissolved in it, the aquarium maintains an average water temperature of 25 degrees Celsius. Computer systems maintain water quality and temperature. The aquarium is home to around 170 tropical fish species from the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans, as well as the Red, Mediterranean, and Caribbean seas. Participants had many questions about assuring fish viability, nutrition, well-being, cohabitation, and ecological functioning. The quarantine system built in the aquarium’s technical premises, which is used for the acclimation of new fish and the treatment of ill ones, as well as technological gadgets that maintain the life of the aquarium’s residents, piqued the curiosity of project participants.

The project is coordinated by Ege University (Turkey). Project partners: University of Balikesir (Turkey), University of Dubrovnik (Croatia), Agricultural University of Iceland, Izmir Metropolitan Municipality (Turkey), Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and Vytautas Magnus University.

The project’s next meeting will be held at Dubrovnik University (Croatia) in June 2023.

The project will last until February 28, 2024.

VMU AA Autumn Intake 2023/2024 is open. Apply now!

Would like to gain strong knowledge, solid skills, and invaluable international experience? Thinking about an unforgettable European student adventure and traveling the world?

Top-quality studies in a high-ranking university and living in Kaunas – located in the center of Europe – may be the perfect combination for You.

Your lifetime adventure can start now. With VMU Agriculture Academy.

Autumn Intake 2023/2024 study programmes:

Application deadlines:

June 1 – for applicants from non-EU/EFTA countries that do not have Lithuanian Embassies in their countries
July 1 – for applicants that are not required to obtain a national visa for arrival to Lithuania, as well as for non-EU/EFTA applicants with Lithuanian Embassies in their home countries

Information about Application and Admission Procedures

Information about Scholarships

APPLY HERE

Contact person: VMU Agriculture Academy International Coordinator Ekaterina Makrickiene ekaterina.makrickiene@vdu.lt +370 37 752 386

More information about VMU Agriculture Academy study programmes

VMU Agriculture Academy graduation ceremony

On 27 January 11 a.m., Vytautas Magnus University Agriculture Academy (VMU AA) invites graduates to participate in festive graduation ceremony.

Diplomas will be awarded to graduates of the Faculty of Bioeconomy Development.

The festive ceremony will take place in the festive hall of the VMU Agricultural Academy (Studentų str. 11, Akademija, Kaunas district).

The event will be photographed and/or filmed; therefore, please note that you might be featured in photos or videos which can be published in various media.

International scientific-practice conference “Human and Nature Safety 2023”

We are delighted to invite You to participate in the 29th international scientific-practice conference “Human and Nature Safety 2023″ organized by Vytautas Magnus University which will be held on 10-12 May, 2023. Conference “Human and Nature Safety” is organized annually on occasion of the International Days of Health, Environmental Protection and Occupational Safety & Health.

The aim of the conference is to discuss interrelated problems of human health and safety, the development of various technological innovations, environmental issues, to disseminate state-of-the-art research knowledge and to create opportunities for scientists and young researchers to share the research results not only among researchers and students, but also for professionals in agriculture and forestry, environmental and health sciences and other fields emphasizing the importance of human safety and environmental protection.

Conference sections:

Biosystem Engineering (11^th May):
dedicated to the 95^th anniversary of the Agricultural Engineering Department (1928-2023)

– technical and technological innovation for sustainable production;
– precision engineering technologies and environmental protection;
– technology safety, occupational risk, ergonomics;
– Water engineering.

Environment and Health (10^th May):
dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the VMU Botanical Garden (1923-2023)

– research of risk factors in living environment and their effects on human health;
– conservation, research, rational and sustainable use of biodiversity.

Ecology, Sustainable Forestry (11^th May):
– environmental research of agro, hydro and forestry ecosystems;
– sustainable development, protected areas, environmental impact of human activities;
– silviculture, forest protection and multi-purpose use, recreational forestry;
– hunting research, management of wild animal populations.

Conference seminars:

Value of Medicinal (Aromatic) Plants in Traditional, Scientific and Applied Aspects (10^th May);
Human for Nature, Nature for Human: the Experience of Dzūkija National Park (12^th May).

Registration to the conference is active till 17^th, February, 2023.

The submission deadline for scientific articles is 10^th, March. Scientific articles will be published in the selected papers of the International Scientific-Practice Conference “Human and Nature Safety”, indexed in the Central & Eastern European Academic Source (EBSCO) database.

Contacts:

Vytautas Magnus University
Studentų street 15a-204, LT-53362, Akademija, Kaunas district

Chairperson of the organizing committee

Gediminas Vasiliauskas

Phone +370 689 77015

Conference administrator

Nijolė Poškienė

Phone +370 37 752357

Conference e-mail: zmogaus.sauga@vdu.lt

More information

Conference events might be filmed and / or photographed and you can be seen in the photos or videos of the event, which can be posted on various media.

Erasmus+ Traineeship Competition 2022-2023. Turn an adventure into an experience!

A competition is open for Erasmus+ student or recent graduate traineeship grants. Application deadline is the 31st of January, 2023.

The placement period is from 2 to 6 months. Recent graduate traineeship must end – in a year after graduation.

Selection

All VMU fulltime degree students who have not used more than 10 months of their Erasmus mobility (study / traineeship) period are eligible for the Erasmus grant.

Selection documents

For student traineeship (traineeship during student’s year of studies)

Filled-in application form „Outgoing-Application for Erasmus Student Traineeship (EU countries)“
Confirmation by the company or organization (obligatory).

Documents must be submitted online.

For recent graduate traineeship (application must be submitted during the last year of studies)

Application form „Outgoing-Application for Erasmus Recent Graduate Traineeship (EU countries)“
Confirmation by the company or organization (obligatory);
Recommendation by a faculty member (obligatory).

The priority in the selection is given to:

students whom traineeship is an obligatory part of their study programme;
students who have never been Erasmus traineeship students before.

Selection criteria:

student’s motivation;
good knowledge of the language which will be used during the traineeship;
student’s work, study, traineeship, participation in the international/academic projects, social activities experience in Lithuania and abroad;
conformability between the chosen traineeship and student’s study programme;
study results (first year MA students should attach transcript of records of their BA/MA degree to the application form).

The competition results will be sent to every participant via e-mail.

Competitions for Erasmus+ traineeships will take place each month until June 2023.

More information

Greetings from VMU Agriculture Academy. Happy and hopeful holidays!

Dear community,

This period is a great time to give a thanks for the gift of friendship, to celebrate the dreams came true and the work done in cooperation. We wish everyone to cherish and grow what we have and light up a bright, peaceful and creative future!

The European Green Deal is Affecting More and More Organizations. Changes in Customs

The action plan of European Green Deal is gaining momentum, more and more organizations have to rethink and review their operational processes, adapt to current and future changes. Associated professors of the Faculty of Bioeconomy Development of Vytautas Magnus university Agriculture Academy (VMU AA) were invited to discuss these changes at the 7th Conference of the Customs Practice Association.

Assoc. prof. dr. Erika Besusparienė on December 8 attended at the 7th conference of the Customs Practice Association, she made a presentation “The European Green Deal: Challenges and Opportunities”, which has been prepared together with colleague assoc. prof. dr. Milita Vienažindienė. The researchers presented several key actions of the European Green Deal, which will directly affect companies importing goods, logistics companies, customs brokers, customs and the consumer of imported goods.

Assoc. prof. dr. M. Viežindiene noted that logistics companies will face new challenges in the product supply chain due to the reduction of CO₂ emissions from new passenger cars and new vans, which by 2030 must be reduced to 50%, and in 2035 – 100%. “This progress can only be achieved by ensuring alternative fuels and evaluating the amount of CO₂ emitted by vehicles, so the European Commission by 2025 must develop a common European Union (EU) methodology for the evaluation of CO₂ emissions throughout the life cycle of passenger cars and vans”, – commented assoc. prof. dr. M. Vienažindienė. Assoc. prof. dr. E. Besusparienė noticed that supply costs are often “hidden costs” in the value of goods, so it is difficult to predict how much the value of goods would increase as a result of transporting goods using alternative fuels.

Assoc. prof. dr. E. Besusparienė singled out the new CO₂ tax, which is named as a carbon border adjustment mechanism in the European Green Course. “The first steps towards the introduction of the tax are already starting from January 1, 2023. The new CO₂ tax will initially affect imports of cement, steel and iron, aluminium, fertilizers and electricity. The CO₂ tax will be applied from 2026 and with the complete abandonment of pollution permits from 2030 only this tax would remain. According to the calculations of the European Commission, the EU budget would be replenished by about 1 billion euros on average every year (2026-2030) due to this tax. Thus, the costs to the business would increase in the same volume. Although the carbon border tax mechanism is designed to prevent that polluting goods would not enter the EU market; and thereby indirectly contribute to third countries’ transformation to more sustainable production. Unfortunately, the market often observes that “green” goods cost more”, – commented assoc. prof. dr. E. Besusprienė.

While participating in the discussion “Green economy, current issues of tariff classification”, assoc. prof. dr. E. Besusparienė noted that the successful development of a circular economy requires the involvement and cooperation of business, government and higher education and study institutions. Assoc. prof. dr. E. Besusparienė, together with the moderator of the discussion Milda Stravinske, discussed that exists false stereotype that the green economy is far from the customs area. To this day, it is being discussed about importing waste and its value, does it differ, if the waste will be utilized or processed. According to accounting theories, when pricing is determined by the cost-plus method, the value of the waste may be the same regardless of further use. However, when discussing the transaction method, which is based on negotiations, different values can be agreed, where the price (value) of the waste to be utilized will be lower (the seller tends to get rid of the waste faster) and the waste that can be used according to the principles of the circular economy will be more valuable and it is assumed that the price (value) will be higher. This is directly related to the customs assessment of goods (in this case, waste) and the calculation of taxes paid to customs. UAB “Muita” head of the customs compliance department Jurgita Stanienė, who participated in the discussion, noted that new challenge is how to classify such imported waste.

The 7th Customs Practice Association conference further revealed the intertwining of various fields and how important it is for representatives of different businesses to reorient themselves in new changes in order to achieve a more sustainable future.

Moments of the 7th Customs Practice Association conference: