My research interests encompass doctoral policies, doctoral careers, government policies related to science from a comparative perspective, social sciences, sociology, academic disciplines, and the transformations of public policies in post-communist spaces and in France. I am interested in research on doctoral careers and intersectoral mobility within the framework of science policy reforms in European countries. My focus lies on examining the development of national and international doctoral policies and their impact on organizational level practices, with specific attention to field-specific effects.

 I joined Adoc and LID in October 2022, following the completion of my dual PhD degree in Political Sciences and Public Administration from Sciences Po Toulouse and Tallinn University of Technology. My doctoral thesis focused on comparing the effects of research funding reforms on collaboration and publication practices in sociological research across the three Baltic States from 1988 to the mid-2010s. I have published articles and presented at conferences on various subjects, including governance of science policies, scientific policy development, social sciences and sociology, academic disciplines, and the transformations of public policies in post-communist spaces. Additionally, I bring prior experience in project management and leadership within Estonia’s youth policy, having served as a student representative and worked with both non-governmental organizations and the public sector, collaborating extensively with EU-related organizations.

Currently, I conduct one- to two-day training sessions for international doctoral students at French universities, including Université de Lorraine, Université Paris-Saclay, and Université PSL. The training sessions cover topics such as ‘Management of the Doctoral Project,’ ‘Preparing Your PhD Thesis Defense,’ and ‘Defining Your Personal Strategy to Join Academic Research.’ In 2018, I developed an undergraduate course on higher education and research policy, which I delivered at Tallinn University of Technology. Furthermore, I lectured on the topic of post-communist countries’ youth policy as part of a graduate-level lifelong learning program at Sciences Po Toulouse between 2017 and 2022.

–       Tõnismann, T. (2022). “Practices and discourses of internationalisation: Baltic States’ sociology before and after the collapse of the Soviet Union.” Revue d’histoire des sciences humaines, 40, 186-206.

–       Tõnismann, T. (2022). “Opportunities and limits in the appropriation of neoliberal research funding models: Social Sciences and Humanities funding in the Baltics.” Revue internationale de politique comparée, 29(1), 127-150.

–       Tõnismann, T. &  Virtanen, J. (2021). “Science policy meets post-New Public Management: Estonian and Finnish reforms 2012-2015.” Journal of Baltic Studies, 52(1), 127-145.

–       Tõnismann, T. (2018). “Paths of Baltic States public research funding 1989-2010: Between institutional heritage and internationalisation.” Science and Public Policy, 46(3), 391-403.

–       Tõnismann, T. (2018). “Structuring Effect of the EU Framework Programmes in Estonia? The Case of Sociology.” Revue Gouvernance, 15(1), 43-62.

–       Tõnismann, T. (2017). “Organizational Transformation and Scientific Change: The Impact of Institutional Restructuring on Universities and Intellectual Innovation (Research in the Sociology of Organizations, Volume 42), edited by: Richard Whitley and Jochen Gläser. Bingley: Emerald, 2014, pp. 406.” Interdisciplinary Political Studies, 3(1), 223-226.

–       Tõnismann, T. (2015). “Mutations institutionnelles post-soviétiques et temporalité individuelle: la politique de la jeunesse en Estonie.” Temporalités, 22.

Comparison of research policy systems & Metascience