RSU Student Union Celebrates Anniversary and Holds Golden Horseshoe Awards

On 21 April, the Rīga Stradiņš University (RSU) Student Union (Studējošo pašpārvalde, SP) annual awards ceremony, Golden Horseshoe Award (Zelta pakavs), was held to celebrate the Union’s 30th anniversary. As every year, this year’s awards honoured the top 11 events, personalities, and cooperation partners who have contributed to the RSU SP in the past year.

This year, the awards ceremony took place at the Railway Museum, bringing together members of the Student Union Council, board members, activists, senior members, representatives of the University management, as well as guests from other Student Union Councils and partner organisations.

Golden Horseshoe 2023 Award Winners

Horseshoe of the Year

International Student Conference in Health and Social Sciences

You can take students away from science, but you cannot take science away from students! After a four-year hiatus, the Internatonal Student Conference in Health and Social Sciences (RSU ISC), one of the largest student-organised scientific conferences in Northern Europe, finally returned to a face-to-face format with a near-record number of submissions, a testament to students’ ever-growing desire to explore and research. It had a truly diverse social programme with offers ranging from museum tours and networking events to board games and eco-friendly bag painting stations. This, together with already popular medical and health science workshops, brought together more than 2,500 enthusiastic young scientists from 27 countries around the world.

Growth of the Year

Alise Luīze Bērziņa, 2nd year student, Medicine

When Bērziņa was running for student senator in her 1st year, she was able to independently find and understand the information she needed to run for office, as well as ask constructive and meaningful questions. Less than a year later, Bērziņa is already the RSU SP Head of Academic Affairs. This is one of the most difficult positions on the Board and requires perseverance and resilience. In her first 100 days in office, Bērziņa, in parallel to her work as student senator, created a successful course evaluation form campaign (for both students and lecturers), contributed to creating the Academic Regulations I document by preventing decisions that were not beneficial to students, and finalised the student-faculty councillor contracts.

Inspiration of the Year

Iluta Žīgure, 4th year student, Pharmacy 

Žīgure will always be the person who lends a hand in a difficult moment and finds the right words of support. She always has thousands of ideas in her head, and she will do everything she can to make them happen. She is in her fourth year in the Union and has no plans to stop any time soon. She took her first steps as an activist and organiser in several projects already in her first years of study, and in 2020 she hosted a freshmen initiation. Žīgure further expanded her experience and potential by becoming actively involved in social activities and became the leader of this direction in 2022. But there are no limits to her growth, and this year she was successfully elected as senator. Žīgure’s desire to improve the student environment and make the study years more interesting and easier motivates young activists to get involved and do their best. Her smile and helpful advice always encourage them to keep going and not to give up.

Senior Member of the Year

Paula Feldmane-Jumīte

It seems that the Union is and always will be on Feldmane-Jumīte’s list of concerns. The work and dedication she has put into it has continued beyond her time on the Board, organising large-scale events such as the 2022 Annual Awards, sharing her expertise at seminars, and attending important events such as the Rector elections. Feldmane-Jumīte has been an excellent mentor and support to the new members of the Student Union and continues to push the Student Union forward, never letting anyone give up even in difficult times. Feldmane-Jumīte is a senior member who will always go the extra mile and be the right hand no matter what time of the day it is. Even now, she continues to support students by working in the RSU Alumni Association and ensuring their successful path after graduation from RSU.

Friend of the Year 

Prof. Tatjana Koķe

Former RSU Vice-Rector for Studies Prof. Koķe has always been responsive and interested in students’ ideas, suggestions, and criticism, has always given advice and made sound arguments in a wide variety of situations, making a great contribution to providing RSU students with the opportunity to strive for an ever-higher quality of education. She can truly be called a friend, as she has always been there for the University’s students, even in difficult times. A positive example is the process of drafting the latest version of the Academic Regulations, during which the professor helped the students to be heard, which contributed to the successful development of the document.

Supporter of the Year

Medical clothing store Ardeline

Ardeline has been a reliable partner for several years, supporting not only the RSU SP’s most ambitious project – the International Student Conference on Health and Social Sciences – but also the educational booklet for freshmen. RSU Student Guide, which provides new students with useful information on how best to start their studies at RSU, including where to buy the best medical gowns for their first classes in the anatomy laboratory. Ardeline has also provided various prizes for smaller events, such as Olympiads organised by RSU student research interest groups.

Scientific Group of the Year

Neurology and Neurosurgery Scientific Interest Group 

The Neurology and Neurosurgery Scientific Interest Group, together with Prof. Andrejs Millers and the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, has been involved in integrating the Latvian Brain Bee project. This unique event, held in Latvia for the second year, aims to stimulate the interest of young people in this field and promote the RSU name. The group has contributed to public education by providing information on cerebral infarction and its risks and by developing research on this and other issues. The group is a major contributor to student research – it offers more than 20 research project opportunities, including ambitious and international projects. Every year, the group’s members win recognition and prizes at conferences, including at RSU ISC. This year, the group has been able to implement the RSU Neurosurgery UpSurgeon BrainBox systems, which will be used both in the group’s activities and in the improvement of related study courses. The group works with multiple objectives, including bringing together those interested in neuroscience at RSU, advancing the treatment of brain diseases, focusing on prevention, engaging in scientific activities, educating the public, developing research, and involving young people.

Innovation of the Year 

Simulation-equipped operating unit at the METC

The Medical Education Technology Centre (METC), which is popular among students in Latvia, has reached new heights in 2022. The simulated environment is now even more modern and closer to reality, thanks to the METC surgical unit that was opened in 2022 and equipped with simulation technology. The newly designed block includes an operating theatre, a space for training surgical and laparoscopic skills and microsurgery, and patient preparation rooms. The surgery training unit is equipped with equipment and furniture used in medical institutions in order to make the simulated environment resemble real-life conditions as closely as possible. The block, which was created in half a year, is one of the most modern training environments of this type in Europe. This not only enhances the prestige of RSU, but also allows healthcare students to gain simulation-based knowledge that can be further used in a professional environment.

Activist of the Year 

Rinalds Daniels Jefimovs

Jefimovs has improved the functioning of the Union not only in seminars and other events, but also in everyday life. He is always ready to help where it is needed. Jefimovs has proven himself in the organising teams of various RSU SP projects. If you are looking for the right technical organiser, you know where to find him!

Issue of the Year 2023

Changes to the Regulations on Writing and Defence of Qualification Papers, Student’s Research Papers, Bachelor’s Thesis, and Master’s Thesis

Last August, changes were made to the regulations on the preparation and defence of final papers (including student research papers), which allow only the first author of an article to treat a scientific publication in an internationally cited journal as a student research paper. This is at odds with reality, where the majority of students in journals of this scale are co-authors of a publication by a specialist in the field (doctor, professor, doctoral student, etc.), with the result that what is often several years of work to produce a publication and the relatively high costs of publication are no longer appreciated in the eyes of the University. Although RSU SP representatives tried to remedy the situation by negotiating with the relevant departments at RSU, the process is now protracted on all sides, and for the majority of final-year students – co-authors of publications – the hope for the reinstatement of the clause in the regulations that also allows co-authors of publications to be treated as such remains in the hands of further cooperation and mutual agreement between the parties involved.

Power of the Year

Support for Ukrainian civilians studying at RSU

RSU helped Ukrainian students to integrate into RSU and continue their studies in the first months of the Russian aggression by providing them not only with tuition fee discounts, monthly scholarships, student hostel rent discounts, but also with psychological support. Workplaces were also provided for visiting Ukrainian researchers and lecturers. It is also important to mention the Latvian language courses that helped integrate Ukrainian students into the Latvian education system. RSU still continues to provide this support.

Entertainment at the ceremony was provided by accordionist Agate Paštore with Pietro Roffi’s piece “Noktirne”, the Cool Collective band, RSU dance ensemble Ačkups, the RSU string quartet B-Sharp who played one of Mozart’s quartets, and the traditional RSU Student Union anthem “Tikai tā” performed by Anna Elīna Niedra and Ēriks Gorda.

A big thank you goes to Haralds Gerts who created the special awards for the nominees for the 6th year in a row! A big and sincere thank you also goes to the sponsors: Gertrūdes ielas teātris, Kvesti, Z/S Ceļmalītes, Grab Store, BAVA driving school, Kino Bize, INJOY/ Enjoy The Life, Gemoss, Z/S Kliģēni, and Liepkalni!