Eesti in brief - 2011-04-14

The University of Tartu offers a final chance to apply for the 2011-2012 TULE program, which gives university dropouts the opportunity to finish their degrees free of charge, reports ERR. TULE is an acronym for Tule Uuesti, Lopeta Edukalt, which in translation to English would mean ‘Come Back, Finish Successfully.’ In total, 153 slots are available for bachelor’s and master’s studies, with the application period running from April 11 - 29, 2011. In the first stage, the faculty admission committee will rank the candidates, based on their average grade and motivation letter. The second round will assess how much of the curriculum the applicants have covered in their previous studies, with preference to those who have attended university longer. Selected students are allowed to continue their studies in a different curriculum and a different university from which they had previously dropped out. As a result of two previous admissions, a total of 244 students have been given a second chance. The program is supported by the European Social Fund and includes 13 higher education institutions across Estonia.

The new Riigikogu starting to work means that 948,512 euros will have to be paid out as compensations to former MPs who were not re-elected, reports Postimees. It is the first time that members of the previous parliament who were not re-elected or who did not run for a seat are paid the whole compensation at once. Till 2007, former MPs were paid a monthly salary for a maximum of 6 months, said Riigikogu chancellery director Heiki Sibul. Six months’ wages are paid to the former MPs who were in the parliament for at least 1 year.  There were 46 such MPs in the 11th Riigikogu and each of them gets 19,536 euros. If they were in the Riigikogu for a shorter period, they can get up to 3 months of wages. 46 MPs will get compensation for March 27 to April 3, when their powers in the old Riigikogu ended and the new Riigikogu had not yet given an oath of office. That compensation amounts to 701 euros per MP, a total of 32,280 euros.