Nikolai Ssorin-Chaikov
- Associate Professor: HSE Campus in St. Petersburg / School of Arts and Humanities / Department of History
- Programme Head: Global and Regional History
- Nikolai Ssorin-Chaikov has been at HSE University since 2015.
Editorial board membership
Education and Degrees
Stanford University
Stanford University
Lomonosov Moscow State University
PhD in Anthropology, Stanford University
Awards and Accomplishments
Best Teacher — 2022, 2017–2018
Supervisor of the following Doctoral theses
- 1Features of the methodology of participant observation in ethnography of work and the workplace
- 2A history of time of urban communes and their dwellers in St Petersburg, 2000 – 2020s
- 3Fieldwork as a “discipline’s core” in late Soviet ethnography
Courses (2024/2025)
- Anthropology of Belief and Knowledge (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities)Eng
- Anthropology of Kinship and Gender (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities)Eng
- Anthropology of bureaucracy (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities field of study History, field of study History; 1 year, 3 module)Eng
- Anthropology of bureaucracy (Mago-Lego; 3 module)Eng
- Ethnography and Social Theory (Postgraduate course; 2 year, 1 semester)Rus
- Gifts of Empire (Master’s programme; Faculty of Humanities; 1 year, 2 module)Eng
- Gifts of Empire (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities field of study History, field of study History; 1 year, 2 module)Eng
- Gifts of Empire (Mago-Lego; 2 module)Eng
- Mentor Seminar “Social Anthropology" (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities; 2 year, 1-3 module)Eng
- Mentor Seminar “Social Anthropology" (Master; 1 year, 1-4 module)Eng
- The Anthropology of Economy and Ethics (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities)Eng
- Writing Power (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities)Eng
- Past Courses
Courses (2023/2024)
- Anthropology of Belief and Knowledge (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 3, 4 module)Eng
- Anthropology of Kinship and Gender (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 1, 2 module)Eng
- Anthropology of Kinship and Gender (Mago-Lego; 1, 2 module)Eng
- Anthropology of bureaucracy (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities field of study History, field of study History; 1 year, 3 module)Eng
- Anthropology of bureaucracy (Mago-Lego; 3 module)Eng
- Ethnography and Social Theory (Postgraduate course; 2 year, 1 semester)Eng
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Chemistry; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Creative Industries field of study Advertising and Public Relations, field of study Management; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Social Sciences field of study Political Science, field of study Public Administration, field of study Psychology, field of study Applied Mathematics and Information Science; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Economic Sciences field of study Economics, field of study Applied Mathematics and Information Science, field of study Economics, field of study Economics; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; St. Petersburg School of Physics, Mathematics, and Computer Science field of study Applied Mathematics and Information Science, field of study Physics; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Humanities field of study Philology, field of study Philosophy, field of study History of Art, field of study History, field of study Cultural Studies, field of study Philology, field of study Asian and African Studies, field of study Asian and African Studies, field of study Asian and African Studies; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Law field of study Law, field of study Law, field of study Law; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Humanities (Nizhny Novgorod) field of study Fundamental and Applied Linguistics, field of study Linguistics, field of study Philology; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities field of study Philology, field of study History, field of study Media Communications; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; School of Foreign Languages; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Management field of study Law, field of study Linguistics, field of study Software Engineering, field of study Economics; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs field of study International Relations, field of study Economics, field of study Asian and African Studies; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Management (Nizhny Novgorod); 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Computer Science field of study Applied Mathematics and Information Science, field of study Software Engineering; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Mathematics field of study Mathematics, field of study Mathematics; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; HSE Tikhonov Moscow Institute of Electronics and Mathematics (MIEM HSE) field of study Applied Mathematics, field of study Information Science and Computation Technology; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Graduate School of Business field of study Management, field of study Management, field of study Business Informatics; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Saint-Petersburg School of Social Sciences; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Urban and Regional Development; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology field of study Biology, field of study Biology; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Physics; 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Foundations of Russian Statehood (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Informatics, Mathematics, and Computer Science (HSE Nizhny Novgorod); 1 year, 1 module)Rus
- Gifts of Empire (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities field of study History, field of study History; 1 year, 2 module)Eng
- Gifts of Empire (Mago-Lego; 2 module)Eng
- Gifts of Empire (Master’s programme; Faculty of Humanities; 1 year, 2 module)Eng
- Mentor Seminar “Social Anthropology" (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities; 1 year, 1-4 module)Eng
- Mentor Seminar “Social Anthropology" (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities; 2 year, 1-3 module)Eng
- The Anthropology of Economy and Ethics (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 1, 2 module)Eng
- The Anthropology of Economy and Ethics (Mago-Lego; 1, 2 module)Eng
- Writing Power (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 3, 4 module)Eng
Courses (2022/2023)
- Anthropology of Belief and Knowledge (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 3, 4 module)Eng
- Anthropology of Kinship and Gender (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 1, 2 module)Eng
- Anthropology of Kinship and Gender (Mago-Lego; 1, 2 module)Eng
- Anthropology of bureaucracy (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities field of study History, field of study History; 1 year, 3, 4 module)Eng
- Anthropology of bureaucracy (Mago-Lego; 3, 4 module)Eng
- Economical and Political Anthropology (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 1, 2 module)Eng
- Economical and Political Anthropology (Mago-Lego; 1, 2 module)Eng
- Ethnography and Social Theory (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 3, 4 module)Eng
- Ethnography and Social Theory (Postgraduate course; 2 year, 1 semester)Rus
- Gifts of Empire (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities field of study History, field of study History; 1 year, 2 module)Eng
- Gifts of Empire (Mago-Lego; 2 module)Eng
- Gifts of Empire (Master’s programme; Faculty of Humanities; 1 year, 2 module)Eng
- Global Inequality in Historical Perspective: An Introduction to Global History (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities field of study History, field of study History; 1 year, 3, 4 module)Eng
- Global Inequality in Historical Perspective: An Introduction to Global History (Mago-Lego; 3, 4 module)Eng
- Mentor Seminar “Social Anthropology" (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities; 1 year, 1-4 module)Eng
Courses (2021/2022)
- Ethnography and Social Theory (Postgraduate course; 2 year, 1 semester)Eng
- Gifts of Empire (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities; 1 year, 1, 2 module)Eng
- Historical Textual Criticism (Master’s programme; Faculty of Humanities; 1 year, 3, 4 module)Eng
- Historical Textual Criticism (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities; 1 year, 3, 4 module)Eng
- Research Seminar (Postgraduate course; 1 year, 1, 2 semester)Rus
- Современная политическая антрAdvanced Political Anthropology (Postgraduate course; 1 year, 1 semester)Rus
Courses (2020/2021)
- Anthropology of Kinship and Gender (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 1, 2 module)Eng
- Anthropology of belief and knowledge (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 3, 4 module)Eng
- Applied Anthropology (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 3, 4 module)Eng
- Economical and Political Anthropology (Minor; School of Arts and Humanities; 1, 2 module)Eng
- Gifts of Empire (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities; 1 year, 1, 2 module)Eng
- Historical Textual Criticism (Master’s programme; School of Arts and Humanities; 1 year, 3, 4 module)Eng
- Theory and methods of contemporary historical knowledge (Postgraduate course; 1 year, 1, 2 semester)Rus
Conferences
- 2019
XIII Конгресс Этнологов и Антропологов России (Казань). Presentation: История одного совхоза: поэтика неоконченной стройки в северной Сибири
Annual meeting of the American Anthropological Association (Ванкувер). Presentation: Current issues in the anthropology of the new right
- 2018
On Thinking, Crafting and Claiming the Future(s) (Хельсинки). Presentation: Future and temporal multiplicity: a brief anthropology of time
- 2017
The Russian Revolutions of 1917: The Northern Impact and Beyond (Тромсо). Presentation: Gifts of the revolution: Soviet indigenous policies through the lens of the anthropology of exchange
917 / 2017: DISCIPLINARY REGIMES OF TRUTH (Тюмень). Presentation: Pravda as Law and Pravda as Truth: Notes towards a Conceptual Ethnography of Truth
XIII МАЛЫЕ БАННЫЕ ЧТЕНИЯ (St Petersburg). Presentation: Социополитика и анархический поворот в антропологии
- 2015
Contemporary Anthropologies of Art (Darham). Presentation: Performativity and exchange: a study in ethnographic conceptualism
Contemporary Anthropologies of Art (Darham). Presentation: Performativity and exchange: a study in ethnographic conceptualism
Dr. Paula Montero on syncretism and pluralism in the configuration of religious diversity in Brazil
On February 16, Dr. Paula Montero, professor of anthropology at the State University of São Paulo and senior researcher at the Brazilian Center of Analysis and Planning, gave the paper "Syncretism and pluralism in the configuration of religious diversity in Brazil" as part of the regular research seminar of the Center for Historical Research and the Department of History.
'I Submitted My Documents to Three Universities: Oxford, Cambridge and the London School of Economics. I was Accepted in All Three'
At HSE University-St Petersburg, except for the main learning trajectory, over two years, the students master an additional one—a minor. It can help to find new optics for research, choose a profession or simply broaden the horizons. A minor helped Tatyana Novotolskaya, a graduate of the Bachelor's programme 'Sociology and Social Informatics', not only find a new area for research but also get enrolled in the Master's programme at Oxford University. Find out more about all these things and some pieces of advice for prospective students in our interview.
The Master's in 'Global and Regional History' Trains Specialists in History and Anthropology
The Master's programme 'Global and Regional History' has two educational tracks: one historical and one anthropological. The main goal of the programme is to prepare graduates to continue their academic careers. However, students will also be able to work in more applied fields: in museums, publishing companies, exhibitions, and marketing. Find out which courses await students and why the programme rejects traditional divisions into Russian and world history in this interview with Nikolai Ssorin-Chaikov, the programme's Academic Supervisor.
Quick Recap of Double Degree Programmes at HSE – St. Petersburg
Double degree tracks have been created as a result of a partnership between HSE – St. Petersburg and other programmes offered by well-known foreign universities. Participants are given the opportunity to study abroad for a year at a partner university. Upon successful defence of a thesis in front of a joint commission, students receive fully fledged diplomas from two universities.
Master's Programme in History Launches Double Degree Track
HSE University — Saint Petersburg and the University of Göttingen have signed the agreement on the double degree track for the Master's programme 'Global and Regional History'. The best programme students will study in Germany for a year and obtain two diplomas issued by both universities.
International Opportunities Online: Joint Courses Bring HSE’s and International Students Together
Call for Applications for the development and delivery of joint online courses with international partner universities completed at HSE University — St. Petersburg at the end of December. Now students of five educational programmes can take courses developed by lecturers from HSE and partner universities. Students of partner universities will take the courses along with students of HSE University — St. Petersburg.
Communications, Creativity and Critical Thinking — What Have the Students Learnt in the Course of the Skills4Future Programme
November 18 a metaprogramme Skills4Future came to a close at HSE University - St Petersburg. During a month participants were working on problematic tasks and projects devoted to the involvement of the youth in the life of the city, developing the concept of the festival for the Russian Museum of Ethnography, studying the cultural scenes of Saint Petersburg and the influence of coronavirus on the society. Let’s see what results the students managed to achieve.
HSE University – St. Petersburg Launches Three New Double Degree Tracks
In late May, the HSE campus in St. Petersburg finalized negotiations with three foreign partner universities to launch three new double degree tracks at the Master’s level.
‘Global and Regional History’ Master’s Programme Seeks Future Historians, Anthropologists, and More
In 2020, HSE - St. Petersburg is launching a new master's programme in ‘Global and Regional History’, which will replace the ‘Applied and Interdisciplinary History’ Programme. The HSE University - Saint Petersburg editorial office interviewed Nikolai Ssorin-Chaikov, Programme Head and anthropologist, about the programme's a global approach to studying history and its international partnerships.
The Autumn School "Change in an Interdisciplinary Perspective" was started in September 20
On September, 20 the Higher School of Economics welcomed with open arms Masters and PhD students from the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München and University of Regensburg for a joint programme looking at Change in an Interdisciplinary Perspective.
Ambassadors for Interdisciplinary and Applied History
Samrat Sil is a recent graduate of the English-taught Master's programme in Applied and Interdisciplinary History ‘Usable Pasts’ at HSE St. Petersburg. David Datmar, a native of Ghana, decided to join the programme to help him prepare for eventual study at the PhD level, which he plans to undertake soon at the University of Oxford. Both gentlemen were recently awarded certificates of recognition for their role as ambassadors contributing to the university’s internationalization agenda.
Anthropology postdocs at HSE St Petersburg
The Higher School of Economics Centre for Historical Research in St. Petersburg, Russia invites applications for postdoctoral research positions in the field of anthropology (application deadline 15 March 2017)
Upcoming Lectures on Ocean Science Politics to Give HSE Exposure to Modern Anthropology
Stefan Helmreich, Professor and Elting E. Morison Chair in the Department of Anthropology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, will be at HSE Moscow and HSE St Petersburg from September 25 – October 4, 2016 to deliver a series of lectures and lead a discussion on the politics of contemporary ocean science. He will also take part in the round table 'Soundscape in the Anthropology of Science and Art' during the Days of Ethnographic Cinema festival organized by the HSE School of Cultural Studies.
Contemporary Anthropologies of Art
Nikolai Ssorin-Chaikov, an associate professor of the Department of History HSE in St Petersburg took part in the conference “Contemporary Anthropologies of Art” which was held at the Durham University (England) on September 9, 2015.