On April 7, 2022, the technology innovation center “CyberHub VR” was opened within the walls of the Financial University. With its help, it is planned to actively introduce virtual and augmented reality technologies into the educational and scientific process. Financial University became the first specialized university of the economic field of study that launched the work of such a platform.
The new location was solemnly opened by Rector of the Financial University Stanislav E. Prokofiev. “We are the first among universities of the economic field of study to open the VR technology center. This project is an example when a student’s startup was realized from its initial stage to the final. The idea of the project was proposed by our alumnus Daniil Andreev, who now heads the Center, and supported by Mikhail A. Eskindarov more than a year ago. I hope that in the near future CyberHub will become a center for generating ideas for introducing virtual reality technologies in education and science as well as a platform for the intellectual and creative development of not only our students and faculty, but also representatives of other universities,” said the Rector. Stanislav E. Prokofiev also expressed gratitude to the management and faculty of the University who participated in the development and implementation of the project, especially noting the contribution of the FinU Alumni Association.
In turn, Daniil Andreev thanked the University management for their support and spoke about the work of the Center. He emphasized that the use of VR technologies in the educational process allows students to immerse themselves deeper into the material, not only to see the content, but also to interact with it. The opening ceremony was attended by the President of the University Mikhail A. Eskindarov, who also noted how relevant the introduction of new technologies in education is.
During the meeting, the guests of the event were shown three training programs in various disciplines developed by experts of the Financial University, among them – a VR simulator “International Trade: Transactions, Risks, Terms of Supply”, an English language quest “Museum Quest” and an immersive simulator in the discipline “Life Safety”. The faculty noted that the use of virtual and augmented reality technologies in the educational process opens up new opportunities for presenting material and studying it more deeply.
At the end of the meeting, Vice-Rector for Educational and Methodical Work Yekaterina Kameneva told about the plans of the Center and announced the first esports championship at the University in the coming autumn.
