State policy on the development of Universities in 2018-2022
Research Summary
November 2022
Between 2018 and 2022, Russia's national policy in the field of higher education has changed significantly. The ‘Science and Universities’ national project, development of human resources potential and improvement of infrastructure became the basis for the modernisation of the education system. State expenditure on higher education grew steadily, and the budget of the national projects increased by 9% annually. In addition, Russia sought to strengthen the international competitiveness of its universities, which improved education and research programmes at the global level.
It is worth noting that in 2021, funding per student reached a record high for the last four years, amounting to 158 thousand rubles. This indicates the state's desire to create more favourable conditions for students and improve the quality of higher education.
Thus, the budget priorities in the Russian education system clearly show that higher education is central to the country's development strategy, along with the importance of primary and secondary education.
Despite a significant increase in the total budget for national projects from 2019, the share of spending on education and science has decreased. In 2022, only 7% of the total budget for national projects is planned to be allocated to these areas, despite the expected increase in funding. Nevertheless, spending on the ‘Science and Universities’ project will increase by 9% annually from 2021 to 2024, reaching 446 billion rubles by 2024.
The national project became the main instrument for modernisation of higher education and science. It included programmes to create research laboratories, research institutes and junior laboratories, as well as the introduction of digital educational platforms. Increased state funding under the project allowed to significantly improve the instrumentation base of universities and to train better quality staff for scientific research. The project ensured that universities became more technologically equipped and that the educational process became digitised.
The Priority 2030 programme aims to bring at least 5 leading Russian universities into the top 100 world rankings. There has been a significant improvement in international rankings due to an increase in publications in scientific journals and active development of international cooperation. This helped to increase the attractiveness of Russian education for international students.
Among the new priorities is the formation of regional conglomerates on the basis of existing universities. This should help strengthen their position in the scientific and educational community, as well as increase their influence on regional development. Key metrics that Russian universities are now focusing on include the number of publications in international databases such as Web of Science and Scopus, the proportion of employed graduates, and support for young researchers, where they aim for more than 30% of researchers to be under the age of 39. The development of international cooperation also remains an important aspect.
Key metrics of the project include technical capacity of universities, digitalisation of education, publications in scientific journals and modernisation of scientific institutes. Over the implementation period, 118 billion roubles have been spent on modernising about 900 infrastructure facilities, including 500 laboratories. The funding also covers thermonuclear technologies, upgrading of instrumentation, youth laboratories and NTI competence centres.
However, the project on digitalisation of education is facing difficulties. The Modern Digital Educational Environment programme will only reach half of the planned classrooms, and the number of learners by 2025 could be 2.4 times lower than planned. The number of online courses is also half of what was expected.
Key priority projects include:
For a detailed analysis, please see our study.
Current situation in the Russian education system
The Russian education system encompasses more than 21 million students, of which about 4 million are university students. The national policy is aimed at ensuring quality education at all levels, but special attention is paid to higher education institutions. This is confirmed by the distribution of budget funds: more than half of the total education budget is allocated to higher education.It is worth noting that in 2021, funding per student reached a record high for the last four years, amounting to 158 thousand rubles. This indicates the state's desire to create more favourable conditions for students and improve the quality of higher education.
Thus, the budget priorities in the Russian education system clearly show that higher education is central to the country's development strategy, along with the importance of primary and secondary education.
National projects
National projects are the most important instrument of national policy aimed at achieving the country's key development goals. In 2020, the restructuring of the projects ‘Science’ and ‘Education’ resulted in the creation of a new national project - ‘Science and Universities’.Despite a significant increase in the total budget for national projects from 2019, the share of spending on education and science has decreased. In 2022, only 7% of the total budget for national projects is planned to be allocated to these areas, despite the expected increase in funding. Nevertheless, spending on the ‘Science and Universities’ project will increase by 9% annually from 2021 to 2024, reaching 446 billion rubles by 2024.
National project ‘Science and Universities’
The budget of the ‘Science and Universities’ project is divided into three main areas: increasing the competitiveness of higher education institutions, development of scientific infrastructure and personnel training. Although this project does not take a leading position among other national initiatives, its funding reflects the government's commitment to maintaining high standards in science and higher education.The national project became the main instrument for modernisation of higher education and science. It included programmes to create research laboratories, research institutes and junior laboratories, as well as the introduction of digital educational platforms. Increased state funding under the project allowed to significantly improve the instrumentation base of universities and to train better quality staff for scientific research. The project ensured that universities became more technologically equipped and that the educational process became digitised.
Increasing the competitiveness of universities
In recent years, the approach to increasing the competitiveness of Russian universities has undergone significant changes. While previously the key priority was to integrate universities into world rankings and create national research universities, now the focus has shifted to other indicators that better reflect the real efficiency and contribution of the universities to society.The Priority 2030 programme aims to bring at least 5 leading Russian universities into the top 100 world rankings. There has been a significant improvement in international rankings due to an increase in publications in scientific journals and active development of international cooperation. This helped to increase the attractiveness of Russian education for international students.
Among the new priorities is the formation of regional conglomerates on the basis of existing universities. This should help strengthen their position in the scientific and educational community, as well as increase their influence on regional development. Key metrics that Russian universities are now focusing on include the number of publications in international databases such as Web of Science and Scopus, the proportion of employed graduates, and support for young researchers, where they aim for more than 30% of researchers to be under the age of 39. The development of international cooperation also remains an important aspect.
Infrastructure improvement
Within the framework of the federal project ‘Development of Infrastructure for Scientific Research and Personnel Training’, a significant part of the budget is allocated to the modernisation of scientific facilities and technical equipment of higher education institutions. 70% of the funds go to modernisation and 30% to commercialisation of science.Key metrics of the project include technical capacity of universities, digitalisation of education, publications in scientific journals and modernisation of scientific institutes. Over the implementation period, 118 billion roubles have been spent on modernising about 900 infrastructure facilities, including 500 laboratories. The funding also covers thermonuclear technologies, upgrading of instrumentation, youth laboratories and NTI competence centres.
However, the project on digitalisation of education is facing difficulties. The Modern Digital Educational Environment programme will only reach half of the planned classrooms, and the number of learners by 2025 could be 2.4 times lower than planned. The number of online courses is also half of what was expected.
Human resource development
The main task of the personnel policy was to attract young specialists. A large number of research and education centres and specialised training and research centres were established to train highly qualified personnel. These measures helped to increase the number of researchers and stimulated scientific publications.Key priority projects include:
- Research and Education Centres (RECs)
- Specialised Training and Research Centres (STRCs)
- World-class Science Centres (WSCs)
- World-class Science Centres (WSCs)
- Science projects
- Scientific laboratories
For a detailed analysis, please see our study.
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