cheapest universities in Russia and tuition costs in all of them
Russia is one of the best study destinations for high quality education and very low tuition fees. Getting a strong education does not require paying high amounts of money, and studying in Russia is a good example of that. Although the costs are generally low in all Russian universities, some universities may be considered expensive for some, so through this article we will talk about the 10 cheapest universities in Russia and perhaps you will find the perfect university for you!
cheapest universities in Russia
cheapest universities in Russia
Comprehensive information about the 10 cheapest universities in Russia
Russia is one of the top study destinations for many international students from around the world. According to statistics of the the Project Atlas initiative, Russia ranks seventh in the world as the most popular destination for study, with more than 330,000 foreign students from different countries around the world.
There is no doubt that a significant number of Russian universities top the list of the best universities in the world. According to the THE World University Ranking for the year 2021 , 5 Russian universities ranked among the top 500 universities in the world, which are:
Lomonosov Moscow State University (ranked #174).
Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT) (ranked #200)
HSE University (ranked #250).
Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University (ranked #350).
Bauman Moscow State Technical University (ranked #450).
This proves to us that the strength of education in Russian universities competes with the level of education in many of the most prestigious universities in the world. And the universities that you will mention in this article, all of them guarantee you a high quality education with low tuition fees, especially if we compare them with universities in other countries.
How is the education system in Russia?
The bachelor’s degree is the first stage of the European higher education system in Bologna, which Russia joined in 2003. Russia’s accession to the Bologna system has made it easier for foreign applicants to enter Russian universities.
The Russian higher education system consists of three stages – bachelor’s, master’s and postgraduate. The exception is medical specializations and some technical specialties, where the educational process is still ongoing within the framework of the specialty or Specialty degree programs.
The duration of study in programs undergraduate in Russia is four years and includes the study of basic and specialized subjects chosen by the student. A bachelor’s degree allows further study to obtain a master’s degree, but does not confer the right to enroll in a graduate (PhD) department.
Specialty Degree Programs (5-6 academic years duration) Graduates are awarded a Specialist Diploma, which gives the right to continue studying in a master’s program or postgraduate department.
The degree is a master’s continuation of the bachelor’s programme, according to the two-level system of 2 + 4 (4 years bachelor + 2 years master), which allows to obtain a deeper and more specialized knowledge. You can also obtain a bachelor’s degree in one specialization and at the same time register for a master’s degree in another. It is a unique opportunity to expand your knowledge and gain new qualifications.
Postgraduate studies are the third level of higher education in Russia. Upon completion of studies at the Postgraduate Department, and after defending the graduation thesis, the graduate is awarded the title of Candidate of Sciences, which in the Bologna educational system is equivalent to a doctorate.
Is it possible to study in Russia for free?
It can be said that the best way to study in Russia for free is with scholarships , where is one the Russian government scholarship of the most famous funding grants from around the world and annually this scholarship receives at least 15 thousand students from different countries of the world.
The Russian scholarship is distinguished by the fact that it includes relatively acceptable funding compared to many scholarships from around the world, as it includes a full exemption from tuition fees, an exemption from the preparatory year fees for the Russian language, university housing, and a monthly living stipend. In addition, it is offered to all levels of study, including bachelor’s, master’s, doctorate, specialized programs, clinical medical specializations, and the Internship year
The other option to finance your living and part of your studies in Russia is to work while you are studying. Where foreign students can work in Russia during their studies and working conditions depend on the type and location of the work. In general, the student needs to obtain a permit to work while studying from the General Department for Migration Issues of the Ministry of the Interior of Russia.
What are the cheapest universities in Russia for international students?
Russia is the largest country in the world, and according to statistics, there are more than 1,100 institutions of higher education. Therefore, it is difficult to determine the 10 cheapest universities in Russia with 100% accuracy because the costs of study differ from one region to another and from one stage of study to another, and they also differ from one specialty to another.
It can be said that the cheapest university to study in Russia for international students is Altai State Technical University, which offers programs for all levels of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees, with tuition fees not exceeding 100,000 rubles (1350 USD) for the preparatory year for the Russian language, with an average cost of 80,000 rubles $1,100) for a bachelor’s, 100,000 rubles ($1,350) for a master and 90,000 rubles ($1,200) for a doctorate.
But in general all the universities mentioned in this list are low cost universities compared to other Russian universities.
Please note that this list is not official, but was created based on the research and study of the Mondo website for Russian universities. Russia is a large country and there are a very large number of universities, but through this list we tried to combine universities with high quality education and low costs at the same time.
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10. Tomsk Polytechnic University
Tomsk Polytechnic University Tomsk Polytechnic University is one of government leading research universities in Russia with focus on applied science and technology. It is located in the central region of Tomsk, Russia and is considered one of the oldest technological universities, its foundation dates back to 1896.
It currently has more than 22,000 students enrolled, of which more than 3,000 are from outside Russia, with an alumni network of over 100,000. The university is the second largest Russian university to receive external funding for its research work. The university achieves a high rate of employment, as 95 percent of its graduates are employed after graduation.
Tomsk Polytechnic University of Russia offers scientific disciplines related to the following main educational faculties:
School of Chemistry and Applied Biomedical Sciences Research School of High Energy Physics.
School of Advanced Manufacturing Technologies.
Computer science and robotics.
Earth sciences and engineering.
College of Energy and Energy Engineering.
College of Engineering Entrepreneurship.
School non-destructive testing.
College of Nuclear Science and Engineering.
Study costs at Tomsk Polytechnic University in Russia (via the university’s website ):
Preparatory year in Russian
For undergraduate programs
for master’s programs
for PhD programs
135,200 rubles ($1,800)
The average is 250,000 rubles ($3,340).
The average is 300,000 rubles (4,000 USD)
The average is 300,000 rubles (4,000 USD)
9. Far Eastern Federal University
University Far East Federal Far Eastern Federal University is public university based in eastern city Vladivostok in Russia. Founded in 1899, this low-cost university is considered one of the best universities in the Russian Far East and one of the leading federal universities in Russia.
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Providing education to more than 42,000 students, it is the first Russian university to launch master’s degree programs in English. It also contributes significantly to the economy of the East and hosts the new and prestigious Eastern Economic Forum.
The university has an academic composition of 9 major schools that include different fields, this Russian university is considered as a bridge between Russian education and the university community around the world and has established relationships with more than 100 different universities in multiple countries for academic exchange and partnerships.
The Russian Far Eastern Federal University offers science majors related to the following main educational faculties:
Oriental Institute – School of Regional and International Studies.
Data Economics School.
Biomedical School.
Faculty of Economics and Management.
School of Education.
College of Engineering.
Faculty of Humanities.
School of Law.
College of Natural Sciences.
Study costs at the Far Eastern Federal University in Russia (via the university’s website ):
Preparatory year in Russian
For undergraduate programs
for master’s programs
for PhD programs
140,000 rubles ($1,870)
The average is 200,000 rubles (2,675 USD)
The average is 270,000 rubles ($3,600).
The average is 290,000 rubles (3,875 USD)
8. Herzen University
The next university in the list of 10 cheapest universities in Russia is Herzen University , an elite institution of higher education located in the trendy city of Saint Petersburg in Russia and considered one of the largest and oldest universities in Russia. The history of the university dates back to the late 18th century and was formerly known as the Leningrad State Pedagogical Institution.
The current student body of the university is more than 20,000 students, and the university academically includes about 20 major faculties and more than 100 different departments.
The Russian Herzen University offers science majors related to the following major educational faculties:
Russian as a foreign language.
life protection.
biology.
geography.
Fine arts.
Institute of Computer Science and Technology Education.
Special Education.
Maths.
Institute of Psychology and Education.
social science.
Physics.
Institute of Physical Culture and Sports.
Philology.
humanistic philosophy.
chemistry.
Law.
Childhood Institute.
Institute of Foreign Languages.
Institute of Music, Theater and Choreography.
Northern People Institute.
Institute of Economics and Management.
Institute of Natural Sciences.
Study costs at Harz University in Russia (via the university’s website ):
Preparatory year in Russian
For undergraduate programs
for master’s programs
undefined.
The average is 220,000 rubles (3,000 USD)
Average 300,000 rubles (4,000 USD)
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7. ITMO University (St. Petersburg National Research University)
ITMO University ( Saint Petersburg National Research University) which stands for Information Technology, Mechanics and Optics, is a large public university located in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is one of the largest research institutions in Russia and its research prowess has resulted in the university being represented in the Russian Academic Excellence Project 5-100, usually ranked among the top 400 universities in the world.
ITMO’s research priorities are in Information Technologies and Photonics and the university has an enrollment of more than 15,000 students with more than 2,500 of them from outside Russia. They study in 18 academic colleges with access to 7 major research institutions supervised by the university.
TMO offers a multi-level education system including 4-year bachelor’s programmes, 5-year specialist programmes, 2-year master’s programs and 3-4 year doctoral programs.
ITMO Russian University offers science majors related to the following main educational faculties:
Institute of Design and Urban Studies.
Institute of Transformational Medicine.
Department of Training of High Qualification Experts.
Computer technologies and control systems.
Industrial robotics and control systems.
Software engineering and computer systems.
Information security and computer technologies.
Information technology and programming.
Information and Communication Technology.
Photonics and optical information.
Laser and light engineering.
Technological management and innovations.
International development and partnership.
Refrigeration and air conditioning technologies.
Biotechnology and Food Engineering.
International Trade and Law.
Management controls and automation.
Natural Sciences.
Integrated military education.
online education.
Secondary vocational education.
Career development and preparatory training before joining.
Advanced teacher training.
Study costs at ITMO University in Russia (via the university website ):
Preparatory year in Russian
For undergraduate programs
for master’s programs
For International Master’s Programs
for PhD programs
undefined.
The average is 228,000 rubles (3,000 US dollars)
Average: 245,000 rubles (3275 USD)
Average: 234,000 rubles ($3,125)
Average: 280,000 rubles ($3,750)
6. Peoples’ Friendship University
The Russian People’s Friendship University , more commonly known as RUDN, is a low-cost state educational institution of higher education based in the capital city of Moscow. Founded in 1960, its campus is considered one of the best university buildings in Russia.
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Currently, RUDN has over 33,000 students, of whom over 9,000 are international. It offers undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and residency programmes, creating conditions for quality education in seven colleges, ten institutes and 156 research laboratories. University research tends to focus on gravity, cosmology, global economics/business and biomedical problems.
The university is distinguished in that it offers a good number of programs taught in languages other than Russian, including programs in English, Arabic, Spanish, Italian, Chinese, Korean, German, Persian, Turkish, French, Hindi and Japanese.
The Russian University of Peoples’ Friendship offers scientific disciplines related to the following main educational faculties:
Institute of Hospitality, Business and Tourism.
Law Institute.
Faculty of Economics.
Environmental College.
Linguistic college.
College of Science.
Institute of Medicine.
Faculty of Russian language and general pedagogical specialties.
Engineering Academy.
College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
Agricultural Technological Institute.
Study costs at the Russian University of Peoples’ Friendship in Russia (via the university’s website ):
Preparatory year in Russian
For undergraduate programs
for master’s programs
for PhD programs
135,200 rubles ($1,800)
The average is 220,000 rubles ($2,950)
The average is 250,000 rubles ($3,340).
The average is 300,000 rubles (4,000 USD)
5. Ural Federal University
Federal University Ural Ural Federal University is one of leading educational institutions in Ural region of Russia and occupies fifth place among our list of cheapest 10 universities in Russia. Founded in 1920, the university is located in Yekaterinburg – the fourth largest city in Russia. Ural Federal University acts as a research and innovation center in the Ural region and cooperates with the Russian Academy of Sciences, consistently ranks among the best universities in the world.
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Ural Federal University offers more than 460 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs in natural sciences, engineering, social sciences and humanities in Russian and English. The university currently has more than 36,000 students, including more than 4,400 international students from 101 countries of the world.
Russian Ural Federal University offers science majors related to the following main educational faculties:
Higher College of Engineering.
Postgraduate studies in economics and management.
Chemical Engineering.
Civil engineering and architecture.
Basic education.
New materials and technologies.
Natural sciences and mathematics.
Open Learning Technologies.
Physical Education, Sports and Youth Policy.
Institute of Physics and Technology.
Public Administration and Entrepreneurship.
Radio Electronics and Information Technology.
Ural for the humanities.
Ural Power Engineering.
Military Training College.
Military educational center.
Complementary Vocational Education Centers.
Specialized educational and scientific center.
Study costs at Ural Federal University in Russia (via the university’s website ):
Preparatory year in Russian
For undergraduate programs
for master’s programs
for PhD programs
for specialization programs
136,000 rubles ($1,800)
The average is 200,000 rubles ($2,950)
The average is 220,000 rubles ($2,275)
The average is 230,000 rubles ($3,075)
The average is 240,000 rubles (3,200 USD)
4. Kazan Federal University
Kazan Federal University Kazan Federal University is government and federal universities higher learning based in western city Kazan in Russia. With its history dating back to the early 19th century (founded in 1804), the university is known as the birthplace of organic chemistry and the theory of “electron spin echo” due to the work of its distinguished alumni and staff.
Currently, this cheap university in Russia is home to more than 50,000 students in more than 700 undergraduate and graduate degree programs at MSc and PhD levels, of whom 11,000 are international students who come from 106 different countries around the world. This large and diverse institution also consists of 16 institutes, 3 graduate schools and a law school in addition to 2 regional branches
The university offers the majority of its programs in Russian. Students who do not speak Russian are required to participate in a one-year language training course at the KFU International Preparatory School. Teaching is provided in English for many programs across the university at both major and master’s levels.
Kazan Federal University offers scientific disciplines related to the following main educational faculties:
Butlerov Institute of Chemistry.
Elabuga Institute of King Faisal University.
Higher Institute of Information Technology and Intelligent Systems.
Computational mathematics and information technology.
Basic Medicine and Biology.
Geology and Petroleum Technologies.
International Relations.
Management, economics and finance.
Philology and Intercultural Communication.
Psychology and Education.
Social and philosophical sciences and mass communication.
Lobachevskii Institute of Mathematics and Mechanics.
Costs of studying at Kazan Federal University in Russia (via the university’s website ):
Preparatory year in Russian
Preparatory year in English
For undergraduate programs
for master’s programs
Medical specialties
155,100 rubles (2,000 USD)
199,000 rubles ($2,650)
Average 160,000 rubles ($2,100)
Average: 170,000 rubles ($2,275)
Average: 220,000 rubles (3,000 US dollars)
3. Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University
University Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal located Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University in far west Kaliningrad city in Baltic Sea, an institution federal higher education founded in 1967 it is one of 10 universities federation in Russia and universities few in Russia which has College Business Administration prominent level Its campus is one of the 10 most beautiful university buildings in Russia.
The university ranks among the top 100 universities in Russia and No. 1 in the Kaliningrad region. It is made up of 12 educational faculties and offers more than 300 educational programs, including a range of academic courses ranging from the humanities to the natural sciences. The university currently has more than 13,500 students enrolled in undergraduate and graduate programs.
Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University of Russia offers science majors related to the following major educational faculties:
Humanities (from medicine and allied disciplines) 37.2%.
Economics and Management 12.4%.
Services 10.7%.
Natural sciences 10.4%.
Physical and Mathematical Sciences 8.2%.
Transport 5.8%.
Education and Pedagogy 4.4%.
Healthcare 4.0%.
Information security 2.8%.
Electronic, radio and communications engineering 1.6%.
Social Sciences 1.5%.
Culture and Arts 1.0%.
Costs of studying at Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University in Russia (via the university’s website ):
Preparatory year in Russian
For undergraduate programs
for master’s programs
for specialization programs
for PhD programs
Medical specialties
137,000 rubles ($1,800)
Average is 2000 USD
Average 2500 USD
Average 2500 USD
Average 2000 USD
Average 3200 USD
2. Southern Federal University
Located Southern Federal University in the southern region of Rostov Oblast, Russia, is another federal institution of higher education and is considered one of the largest scientific and educational centers in Russia, providing education to more than 40,000 students, including over 2,500 foreign students.
Founded in 1915, the Southern Federal University participates in the Bologna European Treaty of Education, and its graduates receive the European Diploma Supplement. The university also conducts world-class research in the fields of information technology, smart materials, nanotechnology, futuristic medicine and robotics.
Offering 81 undergraduate programs, 20 major degree programs, 199 master’s programs and 26 doctoral programs, the university is usually ranked among the top 1000 universities in the world.
South Russian Federal University offers science majors related to the following main educational faculties:
Faculty of Biology and Soil Sciences.
Chemistry.
Economy.
Geology and geography.
high technologies.
Engineering Research and Development Center. piezoelectric “Piezopribor”
Date.
Rights.
Mathematics, mechanics and computer science.
Philology and journalism.
Philosophy and Cultural Studies.
Social and political sciences.
Linguistics and Philology.
Physical Education and Sports.
Natural Sciences.
Technology and Entrepreneurship.
Visual arts.
College of Advanced Training and Professional Development for Teachers
Institute of Architecture and Arts.
Smart Materials Research Center.
psychology.
Physics.
Regional Studies.
Study costs at the Southern Federal University of Russia (via the university’s website ):
Preparatory year in Russian
For undergraduate programs
for master’s programs
for PhD programs
105,000 rubles (1,400 USD)
The average is 138,000 rubles (1860 US dollars)
The average is 170,000 rubles ($2,275)
The average is 174,000 rubles (2325 US dollars)
1. Altai State Technical University
tops the list of 10 cheapest universities in Russia Altai State Technical University , and it can be said that it is the cheapest university in Russia in terms of study costs for foreign students, if you are looking for an excellent quality of education at the same time.
Located in Barnaul in the Altai region in southern Russia, Altai State Technical University is a leading public research university offering most of its programs in the field of technology and science. Founded in 1942 as an industrial institution, the university is considered one of the largest higher education institutions in Russia, and one of the top 100 Russian universities.
The Russian University offers more than 100 degrees and courses that include 4-year bachelor’s programs, 2-year master’s programs as well as specialized diplomas. Additional PhD programs in specific subjects are also offered.
The university is a major scientific center that conducts research in technical, fundamental, natural and applied economic areas. The university has a student population of 22,000, a large part of whom are students from outside Russia.
Altai State Technical University of Russia offers scientific disciplines related to the following main educational faculties:
Faculty of Humanities.
Information Technology.
special technology.
civil engineering.
Energy engineering.
Energy engineering and road transport.
College pre-university training.
University College of Technology after VV Petrov.
Institute of Architecture and Design.
Institute of Biotechnology, Food and Chemical Engineering.
Institute of Continuing Professional Education Development.
Institute of Economics and Management.
Tuition fees at Altai State Technical University in Russia (via the university’s website ):
Preparatory year in Russian
For undergraduate programs
for master’s programs
for PhD programs
Specialized Programs
75,000 rubles (equivalent to 1,000 US dollars)
The average is 80,000 rubles (1,100 USD)
Average: 100,000 rubles (1,350 USD)
The average is 90,000 rubles (1,200 USD)
The average is 90,000 rubles (1,200 USD)
This, my friends, was a list of the 10 cheapest universities in Russia and the costs associated with education in each of them. If you are planning to study in Russia and have a somewhat limited budget, I am sure that you will find the right university among them
