The network of federal universities in Russia has become a unique project aimed at modernizing higher professional education. Such complexes provide a balanced distribution of personnel and scientific innovations, contributing to the development of the region. Opinions differ as to how many federal universities there are in Russia: 8 or 10. Initially, when the decree on their creation was issued in 2009, the structure included 8 universities, including the reorganized Immanuel Kant B altic Federal University. To date, 10 Russian universities have the status of "federal". In 2011, this status was given to the North Caucasian, and in 2014 the Crimean Federal University named after V. I. Vernadsky. Moscow State University and St. Petersburg State University, despite their scale, are not included in this list.
How are federal universities created?
Federal universities of Russia are created on the basis of several educational institutions, and the structure of the educational complex may include scientific and research laboratories that are subordinate to federal bodies. PeculiarityThe complex consists in its autonomy - such universities have the right to independently develop curricula that will best meet the needs of the university and the region. It is obligatory to have a university president and a board of trustees who will be responsible for attracting additional financial investments. Such freedom of action is entrusted to the federal universities of Russia for a reason. The main goal of universities is the development of innovative development programs that will combine scientific and educational processes, providing a qualitatively new training for a future specialist. The rules for admission to such a university are no different from those established under the standard admission procedure.
Which universities are included in the list of federal universities in Russia?
The very first university of this kind was the Siberian Federal University. The complex included four institutes of the district. Today, SibFU is represented by 20 institutes and 3 branches and ranks 16th in the overall ranking of universities in the Russian Federation and 10th in the ranking of demand for graduates. The scientific base of the university is represented by research centers, a supercomputer, a seismic survey station, an observatory and a complex of modern laboratories. SibFU has innovative enterprises created and operating directly within the university.
Federal University of the South of Russia
SFU or the Southern Federal University were the next to join SFU. The university is represented by all scientific and educational areas, most of the programs are related to the humanities (43% of the totalnumber of directions) and engineering (20%). The main areas of scientific developments are nano- and biotechnologies, aviation and space technology. The Central Humanitarian Innovation Project is a model for the development of human capital and tolerant communities in a multi-ethnic district of the Russian Federation.
Arctic Research and Education Complex
Comprehensive study of high latitudes is the mission of the Northern Federal University. The university provides training in engineering, technical, physical, mathematical and humanitarian areas. Most of the programs are focused on the needs of the Arctic region. Large-scale scientific divisions of the university include the Arctic Center for Strategic Studies and the Institute of Biomedical Research.
Scientific activity of KFU
The next reorganization and acquisition of a new status was Kazan Federal University. The priority scientific areas of this university are biomedicine, pharmaceuticals, oil production, and space technologies. KFU also has humanitarian areas, the programs of which are implemented in such units as:
- Institute of International Relations.
- Department of Law.
- Institute of Philology and Intercultural Communication. Leo Tolstoy.
- Institute of Social and Philosophical Sciences.
Leading university of the Sverdlovsk region
UrFU is also among the 10 federal universities in Russia. The university implements about 400 educationalprograms. Ural Federal University the first president of Russia takes 12th place in the overall ranking of universities in the Russian Federation and is among the top 10 universities with the most sought-after graduates in the labor market. UrFU actively cooperates with other universities; in 2017, four joint educational programs were launched with North China University. Priority research areas include:
- The place of man in the information society.
- Rational nature management.
- Flexible technologies.
- Living systems.
UrFU is a recognized innovation leader in the region.
FEFU mission
Later the status of the federal received FEFU - Far Eastern Federal University. The central areas of study are engineering, construction, natural and humanitarian disciplines. A special place is given to such a program as "Oriental Studies". As part of the direction, students study the economic, social and cultural characteristics of the neighboring countries of the region: Japan and China. FEFU also takes into account the personal wishes of the student: 20% of the teaching load is compiled by the students personally. The university implements joint educational programs with the Shandong University of Finance and Economics in China. The main scientific research is related to the marine life of the region.
Scientific potential of the Far East region
NEFU is considered a major scientific center of the North-East of Russia, ranks 34th in the ranking of the best universities in the Russian Federation, is included intwenty universities with the best level of teaching. Priority research includes:
- Counterterrorism.
- Rational nature management.
- Life Sciences.
- Perspective types of weapons.
- Nanosystems industry.
- Nuclear power.
- Space systems.
- Information systems.
The structure of the university includes 5 research institutes, among them the Institute of A. E. Kulakovsky, Applied Ecology of the North, Regional Economics of the North. Programs of all directions are being implemented within the walls of NEFU.
European potential of federal universities
One of the last to be reorganized was the B altic Federal University. Immanuel Kant. It implements about 138 educational programs of all levels. The leading scientific areas include nano- and biotechnologies, robotics, laser and neurotechnologies. The university is among the top 10 universities in the Russian Federation in terms of the number of international contacts. Priority areas are humanitarian, economic, natural and mathematical.
Research base of NCFU
The structure of the North Caucasian Federal University includes 9 institutes. About 80% of the teaching staff have a scientific degree, the average age of NCFU teachers is 45 years old, which makes the university one of the best in the Russian Federation in terms of staffing. The priority research areas of the university include:
- Aerospace technology.
- Theory of functions and functional analysis.
- Optics.
- High-load databases.
- Mathematical modeling in socio-economic systems.
- Development of protective information systems.
- Socio-political development of modern society.
The youngest in the list of federal universities in Russia was the Crimean University. V. I. Vernadsky. Its educational programs also meet the needs of the region and are related to seismology, oriental studies and environmental management. We can assume that the educational reform has borne fruit: 9 out of 10 federal universities (with the exception of the Crimean one) are in the top 100 universities of the Russian Federation. The rating of federal universities in Russia was distributed as follows: UrFU took the lead (12th place in the overall list), followed by KFU (16th place) and SibFU (17th place).
