Russia

SECONDARY AND HIGHER EDUCATION

In Russia there are several types of schools - secondary, technical and vocational - giving complete secondary education.

School-levers can be enrolled in higher schools though a system of competitive examinations. Preference is given to those young people who have experience in practical work.

There are two forms of tuition in Russia: free and requiring payment. This is innovation that appeared not long ago. Recently there have appeared new types of schools which provide higher level of education, with many subjects being taught in foreign languages such as English, French, Spanish and some others, also with a special bias towards the sciences or humanities. In these schools parents have to pay for tuition and the fee is rather high. Higher educational establishments as well as postgraduate courses provide both free and paid educational facilities. Students who do well can get scholarship or grant. Others can get student loan.

Universities train research workers in the social sciences and in the humanities: philology, literature and history. They also train workers in the sciences: chemistry, mathematics, biology, geology, astronomy, physics, and so on. The students study for five years before they get a diploma.

At present best and most prestigious technical, medical and other Institutes are renamed into Universities and Academies. This means higher salaries for professors, smaller groups for students and thus better conditions for both.

There are two science degrees in Russia: Candidate and Doctorate. The degree of Candidate of Sciences requires three years of postgraduate studies, sometimes a much longer period of research activities, the passing of candidate examinations and public defence of a dissertation. Every postgraduate working on the research problem is provided with an adviser. Candidate's degree is approximately equal to Ph.D. degree.

The second degree in sciences - Doctorate - is awarded by the Higher Qualification Commission of leading scientists and scholars for some original research, for a new contribution to science. The obtaining of Doctor's degree also requires submission of a dissertation and public defence.

The Russian Academy of Sciences is the largest scientific institution in Russia. The progress of Russian science and its achievements in various fields of knowledge are under the auspices of the Academy. The Academy is the centre of Russian science. There is a network of research institutes sponsored by the Academy, comprising all branches of pure and applied science. The Academy has also greatly contributed to world science.

Nowadays there is the growing influence of the market on scientific research. Russian science is fully alive to the need to market its achievements on the international scene. The principle that research institutes must also consider the market conditions in order to survive seems established. Many institute directors and laboratory heads are hunting around for funds and for new joint projects in Russia and abroad.

There are several sources of funds besides the state budget, that is rather low, such as the science ministry, government ministries, and the Russian National Research Foundation. The last one provides financial help on a competitive basis for travelling and living expenses, conference fees specially for young scientists who can't afford to pay themselves. That's a very essential point. Science can't exist in isolation, or be self-sufficient. New contacts, exchange of ideas can't be overestimated.