21 December 2007 — St Petersburg University’s Higher School of Management and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) have entered into a cooperation contract today to raise targeted finance.

The targets under the contract are two individual professor positions at St Petersburg University’s Higher School of Management for accounting, finance and international business. EUR1.00 million worth of support will be provided within the next five years.

Says Dean Valerie Katkalo, Higher School of Management, St Petersburg University:

“We are delighted to have established partnership relations with PricewaterhouseCoopers as one of the world’s business leaders, which will undoubtedly strengthen the potential of the Higher School of Management in teaching and researching into finance, accounting and international business. Our partners’ decision to finance two individual professor positions in the next 5 years will help us support the projects of our leading instructors and retain high-profile international professors for the Higher School of Management to address those areas of study.”

Says Peter Gerendasi, PricewaterhouseCoopers Managing Partner, Russia:

“By supporting the two individual professor positions in finance, accounting and international business, our firm enhances the quality of Russian finance management and facilitates the country’s integration in global economy. Human capital is core to our business as much as it is to Russia today. We are happy to be able to do our bit in promoting the country's personnel potential in keeping with the project EDUCATION as the country's priority national initiative.”

Apart from finance, PricewaterhouseCoopers will share the instruction process and curriculum discussions at the Higher School of Management to address such areas as management, accounting and taxation. PwC experts will be paying visits as guest instructors. A programme will be developed to cover probation jobs at PricewaterhouseCoopers for Higher School of Management students.

Support for education is among the priority areas for PricewaterhouseCoopers in Russia. The firm cooperates with scores of higher education institutions across the country. Such initiatives include curricula, probation jobs and scholarships. Also, they provide the framework for corporate experts to deliver lectures, hold workshops and extracurricular training sessions for students.

Notes to Editor:

1. For additional information, please contact of the Higher School of Management or of PricewaterhouseCoopers.
2. St Petersburg University’s Higher School of Management was established on the basis of St Petersburg University’s Management Department under the national priority project EDUCATION. The Department is completing 15 years in 2008. St Petersburg University’s Higher School of Management follows the pattern of the world’s leading business schools where education is wedded to scientific research. The Higher School of Management is currently implementing the BA, Master Degree, post-graduate, Executive MBA, open and corporate short-term programmes. Partnership relations are in place with 26 leading business schools in the USA and Europe. St Petersburg’s Higher School of Management Alumni Association encompasses more than 2500 professional managers. 2008-2010 will witness the launching of the International Executive MBA, full-time attendance MBA and Master of Finance programmes. It will also be the period for commissioning the first stage of the countryside School campus located on the parkland property of Mikhailovskaya Datcha where President Vladimir V. Putin of the Russian Federation laid the foundation stone at the ceremony in November 2006.
3. PricewaterhouseCoopers provides industry-focused assurance, tax and advisory services to public and private companies to build public trust and enhance value for its clients and their stakeholders. More than 146,000 people in 150 countries across our network share their thinking, experience and solutions to develop fresh perspectives and practical advice.“PricewaterhouseCoopers” refers to the network of member firms of PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited, each of which is a separate and independent legal entity.