Prof. Toivo Leiger

It’s strange to be in a math department so small that the professors talk about you. All the professors here know me; apparently they’ve all heard that I’m a “hard worker” and a “promising student.” They seem genuinely disappointed that I’m leaving.

Today I met with the head of the mathematics institute, Professor Toivo Leiger. He’s a tall man with a weathered face and a very practical disposition. He doesn’t mince words and comes off as stern – in short, he is typically Estonian. When his secretary e-mailed me and told me that he wished to speak with me, I was a little scared to sit down one-on-one with someone who seemed so unbending. To my surprise, though, when I arrived and explained my situation to him I discovered that he’s actually very reasonable. He said that he understood, and was sorry that things ended up this way. Whereas my thesis advisor Peeter Oja tried his best to convince me to stay, Professor Leiger calmly admitted that the mathematics department here was indeed focused more on theory than application; moreover, I wasn’t the first student to be disappointed by this fact. He nodded his head. He thought quietly. The sunlight shone through the dusty window as I calmly waited for him to speak.

He asked me what my plans were from here on out. I said that I was going home to take the GREs and then take some classes over winter and spring terms before hopefully being accepted to another grad program in the fall. He smiled – though it was less of a smile and more of a relaxation of his facial muscles – and said “Ma usun küll, et olete vastu võetud. Nad näevad, et olete hea tüdruk.” ["I believe that they will accept you. They'll see that you're a good girl."]