State higher education in the Russian Federation comprises 552 higher education institutions, not including military institutions.
Some 2.6 million students had enrolled in higher education institutions in 1996 (coming from the Russian Federation and 150 countries world-wide) with a teaching staff of over 220 000 full professors, associate professors and lecturers at university-level institutions.
The government of the Russian Federation has stipulated three levels of study:
- Level I generally lasts 2 years to study for a Bachelor’s or specialist’s intermediate diploma. This level concentrates on compulsory fundamental courses in the given disciplines. Students holding a Level I qualification may either continue their studies or, if they choose not to, leave the institution with an intermediate diploma.
- Level II marks the continuation of studies for additional two years leading to a Bachelor's degree. Consequently, this first academic degree entails four years of study.
- Level III represents an educational level common to both the Master Diploma and the Specialist Diploma.
With more than 880 higher education institutions, the Russian Federation's higher education system offers a wide range of study and research programmes designed to meet every possible academic need on the part of students and academics. These include:
Preparatory courses which provide foreign .students wishing to enter higher education with intensive Russian language training and refresher courses in the chosen academic subjects (arts and humanities, social studies, science, engineering, medicine);
- Intermediate diploma courses;
- Full Bachelor's degree programmes (B.A. or B.Sc.):
- Full Master's degree programmes (M.A. or M.Sc.);
- Master's degree programmes for graduates already holding a Bachelor's degree;
- Special full-time courses for visiting students who commenced and/or will complete their degree at a foreign higher education institution;
- Doctoral programmes (PhD and DSc);
- Continuing education and training programmes;
- Research study programmes;
- Retraining programmes;
- Russian language courses, including Russian for business purposes;
- Refresher courses for foreign teachers of the Russian language;
- Specialist's diploma programmes.
The academic year lasts ten months from I September to 23 June of the following year and is divided into 2 semesters.