The CUTting-edge of Russian Universities

The Ministry of Education has come up with fifty criteria evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of  Russian universities in order to unite the more successful universities with the “weak” ones, cutting the number of the universities around the country in the process. These criteria include the research sphere, international connections and policy, academic achievements of students, their participation in national and international contests and many more.

Some of these points are rather subjective and should not be taken as the absolute criteria to make such important decisions. However, the problem is rooted deeper in the whole system of higher education, which still bears soviet features but desperately strives to get closer to foreign universities in the ratings. That’s why the Bologna system is being introduced in Russian universities, mixing up the old system with the new one, creating half-thought out programs for new applicants, cutting the number of budget-covered places and giving new Bachelor diplomas. But do these changes make much difference in the end?

How to make Russian universities visible on the global level? This is one of the most urgent questions that the Ministry of Education is considering now. How to make them competitive with American and English universities and beat the world rankings? Worries about the quality of education in the universities throughout the country are quite reasonable. Where does the problem lie? The best Russian universities do not make the first 100 of the universities in the world. Half of the Russian government has graduated from Moscow State University and Saint-Petersburg University, which are at the bottom of world university ratings. When 2/3 of the graduates leave the country to find a job abroad, the importance of making Russian education valuable and visible is the first priority.

Moscow State University
Nowadays there are more than 3000 universities all over the country, claiming to give a high-standard education to the students and provide them with good career opportunities. In reality, however, a great number of such universities do not meet the demands of the national education program and thus give diplomas to the students who never actually attend them. After their graduation such students plunge into the job market as economists and lawyers. One can only guess how reliable and experienced such specialists are. The problem that can be easily traced here is the accessibility of higher education to anyone who has money or connections. That often means that students who make the effort to study and aspire to learn more and become good specialists are studying together with those who skip classes and don’t care about the studies at all and still get a diploma.

As a result, the value of the university diploma is decreasing and often the name of the university is not taken into consideration by the employer. A Russian writer, Vadim Levental, states that the problem is the over qualification of graduates in the country. “Education should become valuable and exclusive in a way. And therefore students who want to spend 4 years at the university should be interested in work they do and be ready to work hard to get the knowledge they need”. I think he is right here, because now nearly everyone has a diploma and still works as a manager, receptionist, driver or waiter. It is no longer a priority for people to get a diploma, as having the right connections or relevant work experience is of much more value. However, funnily enough, if you want to get a low-skilled job, the question about your education and diploma is likely to be the first one. These confusing changes in the University system have just started and the list of the universities failing to meet the particular demands and criteria will be ready by March 2013.

Reforming the educational system reminds me of the kind of “patchwork” that combines different useless pieces, very often not in the slightest way connected with each other. The changes should be consistent and the students shouldn’t suffer from arbitrary decisions, otherwise the number of those who want to leave the country for better education opportunities and job prospects will only continue to rise.