Skoltech has finalized the 2026 Independent Study Period (ISP). Over the course of three weeks, students, faculty, staff, and guest speakers taught courses on topics beyond their respective educational programs. Students learned to generate stories using artificial intelligence, mastered barista skills, explored 20th-century Western art, discovered the science of horseback riding, and delved into the intricacies of modern banking systems.

ISP helps students explore topics beyond their area of study, develop soft skills, and broaden their worldview. It also helps STEM students master teaching skills. This year, Skoltech offered 47 ISP courses, most of which were proposed by the Institute’s employees. All ISP course proposals undergo a competitive review process. Following last year’s success, six courses were offered again this year. 

The invited speakers included Marcus Guest, the founder of PowerMaps, a company that helps corporations develop situational awareness. Guest’s course demonstrates how to navigate the changing environment, identify major threats and limitations, and find new opportunities.

“The course is based on Wardley Mapping. We teach students to map the business landscape, anticipate future changes, and identify new opportunities. They will be able to apply these skills to any business project or thesis topic. They will learn to better understand the current landscape, how it is changing, and how to plan for the future,” Marcus Guest commented.

Assistant Professor Maxim Sharaev, who heads the Skoltech AI Center’s BIMAI-Lab (a joint laboratory between Skoltech and the UAE-based University of Sharjah), taught a course titled “AI-based Industrial Projects: from Concept to MVP.” The course demonstrated the importance of synthesizing various components when creating an innovative product: These components include expertise in AI, technology, data, budgets, markets, and the product itself.

“When we launched our projects at the Skoltech Applied AI Center several years ago, we found that many students didn’t know how to bridge the gap between pure research and development in order to deliver their projects to customers. This is a key skill. I hope that by the end of this course, students will learn how to create detailed plans, write technical specifications for the research stage, allocate project resources intelligently, and balance the needs of customers and developers,” Maxim Sharaev noted.

Data Science MSc student Lyudmila Zavadskaya led an original course exploring the fundamentals of horseback riding and humane horse handling. Students were encouraged to analyze challenging scenarios involving horses.

“When working with a horse, it’s important to constantly analyze its behavior and adjust your training plan accordingly. Riders and trainers alike must be flexible in any situation. During the course, we discussed how to control a horse’s behavior, improve posture, and react to unusual situations,” Zavadskaya shared.

Students also honed their creative thinking skills in a birch bark weaving course taught by Dmitrij Shhigarev, an MSc student in Photonics and Quantum Materials. The course included practical classes demonstrating how traditional crafts can remain relevant today and how working with materials can help develop focus and attention.

“During the introductory classes, we discussed birch bark and its properties, as well as various weaving techniques. By the end of the course, students learned to create different shapes with birch bark and mastered woodworking, woodcarving, and weaving with rattan and birch bark strips. Each student will present their project at the exhibition,” Dmitrij Shhigarev explained.

A course on hydrogen energy led by Alexandra Boldyreva, Sergey Porokhin, and Elena Mukhina from the Energy Center included on-campus classes and, for the first time, a tour of an actual production facility.

“We introduced the students to the concept of hydrogen energy and discussed its prospects in Russia and around the world. We also explored all possible methods of producing hydrogen and converting it back into electricity. The highlight of the course was the tour of the Hydrogen Technology Center, where the students visited an electrolyzer production line and learned about AFK Sistema’s real-life projects,” Alexandra Boldyreva commented.

On February 6, Skoltech announced the winners of the Best ISP Student Course Competition. Starting in 2023, students who submit and successfully deliver advanced courses receive special scholarships. This year’s winners are:

• 1st place — MSc student Alexey Abramov (Advanced Manufacturing Technologies) with the course “Craft of Coffee-Making”;

• 2nd place — MSc students Shahzad (Materials Science) and Muhammad Adil Rehman (Advanced Manufacturing Technologies) with the course “Scientific Graphics & Digital Portfolio Building”;

• 3rd place — MSc student Alexey Kamelin (Life Sciences) with the course “Multiplayer Game Dev on Unreal”.