Rectorship in the System of Higher Education in the 19th and early 20th centuries: The Case of the Imperial University of St. Vladimir

Abstract

This paper explores the institution of rectorship through the example of the Imperial University of St. Vladimir in Kiev (1834–1917). An analysis of the role and functions of rectors was conducted through the lens of the following three major models of the university: pre-classical (represented by the medieval university corporation), classical (the research university of the 19th and the first half of the 20th centuries), and post-classical (the mass university of the 20th and 21st centuries). The analysis helped gain an insight into the key trends in the development of higher education in Ukraine and the Russian Empire as a whole. The findings revealed that there was a transformation in the functionality of the university rector from a mere appointee to a leader in the scholarly community enjoying a high level of public recognition. A distinctive characteristic of rectorship in the Russian Empire was its dual status – (1) representing a given university’s academic community and (2) representing the state’s bureaucratic machine. The latter was associated with the need to maintain close touch with the local nobility and to secure the backing of the trustee of a given educational district and the nation’s Minister of Public Education. The institution of rectorship at the Imperial University of St. Vladimir was explored through the lens of the following key aspects: legal, organizational, social, and ethnic.