Russia's higher education system is undergoing a significant transformation, with universities increasingly being used as instruments of military influence. Groza examines how Russian authorities are turning universities into virtual military bases, pushing education into the background. Since the war against Ukraine began, universities have become platforms for militaristic propaganda, with students forced to attend pro-war events and contribute to military aid efforts.
Professors are teaching students about hybrid warfare and the eastward expansion of NATO, and those who oppose the war face severe consequences, including expulsion and dismissal. In a special report for Mediazona, Groza explores how Russian higher education has been militarized over the past year and a half.
Over the last 18 months, Russian universities have introduced numerous courses that promote the war against Ukraine and justify strained relations with Western nations. These courses also seem to prepare students for military involvement. Here are some notable examples.
In 2022, the Ministry of Higher Education and Science sanctioned a course on hybrid warfare developed by the Russian State Social University (RSSU). This course, which covers the theory and practice of hybrid warfare, has been incorporated into many educational programmes.
Hybrid warfare is depicted as a hallmark of the 21st century, occurring not just on battlefields but also in the economy, media, and public consciousness. Jomart Aliyev, first vice-rector of RSSU, states, “Each of us is a direct participant. You cannot escape hybrid warfare by declaring yourself a deserter or a pacifist — it will still catch up with you. You just have to be prepared for it. And at RSSU, we are working on training professionals who will be able to provide reliable defense for their country — in economics, in the information field, in ideological terms, and so on.”
President Putin claims that the West is waging hybrid warfare against Russia, citing greed and power retention as motives. In September 2022, he noted that the “collective West” was the aggressor. In July, during a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting, he characterized “anti-Russian” sanctions as hybrid warfare.
In September, Moscow State University's Faculty of Political Science began training specialists to counter technologies used in information, hybrid, and trade wars, as well as the so-called color revolution. Students receive instruction in pseudo-scientific neuro-linguistic programming, the practice of information operations, combating fake news, and providing information support for military operations.
One-off lectures on hybrid warfare are also offered, such as a two-day course at Moscow's Higher School of Economics in December 2022. This course addressed “countering hybrid warfare as a form of terrorism” and examined the alleged work of the Centre for Informational & Psychological Operations in Ukraine (CIPSO) and so-called Western curators.
Russian authorities aim to increase the number of students studying drone development to 40,000 by 2025 and 180,000 by 2030. To support this initiative, the federal budget will allocate 57.7 billion rubles (US$668 million) between 2024 and 2030, with 5.3 billion rubles (US$61 million) allocated for 2024 alone.
Universities have already begun recruiting students to train in drone operation. In St. Petersburg, institutions such as the Polytechnic University, the Electrotechnical Institute (LETI), and the State University of Telecommunications are establishing drone-specialist programmes, with plans to open dedicated departments and faculties in the coming years.
In May, LETI organized an event with Special Technology Centre LLC (STC), the manufacturer of Orlan military drones. Students learned about internship opportunities and new developments from STC employees. At the St. Petersburg College of Electronics and Instrumentation students are already being trained to repair Orlan drones, focusing on identifying and fixing malfunctions.
In Tatarstan, underage students at the Alabuga Polytech college are being forced to assemble Shahid drones, produced in Russia under an Iranian license. Students are not compensated for overtime work and report having insufficient time for their studies. They are also made to play “patriotic” paintball, shooting at “fascists” marked with NATO flags.
In November, Oleg Kozhemyako, governor of Primorsky Krai, announced that university students were enlisted to assemble drones, with “100 pieces ready by the end of the month”.
In December 2022, the Russian Ministry of Higher Education and Science recommended that, from 1 September 2023, universities introduce a Military Training Fundamentals course developed together with the Ministry of Defence. Students must pass a credit test at the end of it. Universities can independently decide whether female students will study the module, originally designed for both genders.
Additionally, students learn about “Russia's place in a multipolar world” and how to assess military-political events from a “patriotic point of view”.
This course has already been introduced across most universities in Yaroslavl. At the Pedagogical University, all first-year undergraduates study military training as a separate discipline, while at the Technical University, second- and third-year students have it included in their Health and Safety classes. The Medical School integrates the module into tactical medicine and disaster medicine courses, taught by war veterans from Ukraine.
In Moscow, the scope of training varies. For instance, undergraduates at the Institute of Physics and Technology devote eight hours to military training, compared to 108 hours at the Linguistic State University. Law and pedagogical state universities integrate the module into the health and safety course, while the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration conducts online classes with pre-recorded lectures. The State University of Construction plans to create digital shooting ranges and weapon models for military training classes.
The Russian State Social University launched an elective basic military training course in September 2022. According to the rector, it was done on students’ demand as a “worthy civic response from the youth to today's events”. The university plans to make this course mandatory.
Kazan Federal University and Moscow State University have announced plans to launch courses on military journalism. The Urals Federal University head of journalism department intends to introduce a course to improve war reporters qualifications, though no such courses have been offered yet.
The Razumovsky Moscow State University of Technology and Management has initiated the Cossacks Media Technologies and Information Policy programme, which trains students to work as military correspondents and counter propaganda.
Military journalists will also be trained in the annexed territories. Melitopol State University will launch a war correspondents course, and in April, an “international” conference titled Military Journalism in the Modern World was held at Luhansk State University, supported by St. Petersburg State University.
Such courses were previously short-term. For example, in November 2022, the Higher School of Economics organized a master class for war correspondents hosted by a reporter of a major state TV channel VGTRK, Alexander Sladkov.
The Russian Ministry of Higher Education and Science introduced a new concept for teaching history, effective from 1 September, 2024. In the modern Russia section, students learn about NATO's eastward expansion and the USA, NATO, and the EU's “refusal” to address threats to Russia's national security, leading to “armed provocations and the Ukrainian regime's preparation to forcibly seize the Donbas republics”.
In the 2023-2024 academic year, non-history degrees will see an increase in prescribed history study hours from 108 to 144. This directive, developed by the Ministry of Education and Science in cooperation with the Russian Historical Society, is part of the “patriotic” educational framework for youth.
“An increased focus on studying Russian history in universities will counteract the falsification of history in any form, fostering patriotism, citizenship, respect for past generations' memory, and responsibility for the country's fate among students,” writes the Russian Ministry of Education.
The Presidential Administration has also developed a course on Foundations and Principles of Russian Statehood, for students across all disciplines. This course aims to “set worldview focus points” and explains why Russia “has always had to withstand pressure from external opponents”.
In November 2022, Russian Minister of Higher Education and Science, Valery Falkov, stated that 480 Russian universities, educating 90% of the country's students, have implemented a module on patriotic, spiritual and moral education of youth titled The Great Patriotic War: Without Statute of Limitations. Developed by Pskov State University, the module aims to “preserve the historical memory of the tragedy of the USSR's peaceful population” being victims of Nazi war crimes during World War II.
The course was piloted in 2021 at six universities: Southern Federal University in Rostov, Baltic Federal University in Kaliningrad, Don State Technical University, Crimean Federal University, and Khabarovsk and Pskov State Universities. The module became mandatory only at Southern Federal University, where all students have to complete 108 independent study hours, and additionally, 36 classroom hours for undergraduates and 72 hours for masters students.
In November 2022, Igor Murog, a regional deputy from the ruling United Russia party and a former army major-general, was appointed executive head of Ryazan State University. Following his appointment, students donated 50 kilograms of apples for Russian soldiers, classes began with the raising of the Russian flag, and a priest was invited to bless the university swimming pool. A week after Murog's appointment, an online petition demanding his dismissal gained 1,300 signatures by March. Critics claimed his leadership style was more suitable for the army.
Another security official, retired police colonel Ilnur Khayrullin, became a deputy vice-rector for general affairs at Kazan Federal University. Formerly head of the department combating corruption and budget theft, he now oversees the university's property and economic and civil security.
Federal projects are also facilitating military personnel integration into higher education. The Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (Rosmolodezh) launched the Your Hero initiative, retraining demobilized soldiers from the war in Ukraine for roles in so-called patriotic education centers at universities, schools, and youth centers. Over 200 war veterans are already involved in the project.
Don State Technical University was the first to retrain soldiers, enrolling 22 Ukraine war veterans in the Teacher for Additional Education course.
“Our university is committed to creating comfortable conditions for the socialization and adaptation of veterans of the Special Military Operation, facilitating their integration into regional patriotic education. I am convinced that these servicemen's experiences will guide the younger generation in choosing their life's path,” says Besarion Meskhi, Rector of DSTU.
In May 2022, President Putin signed a decree allocating 10% of state-funded university places to children of military personnel and Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) employees involved in the war. In August, this benefit extended to children of Federal Penitentiary Service (FPS) employees involved in the war, and in December, to soldiers awarded the Hero of Russia title or three Orders of Courage.
In 2023, participants in the war against Ukraine and their children filled 8,500 state-funded places under this quota. Over 800 of these students were admitted to top-ranked universities, despite many scoring below passing marks on the Unified State Exam (USE) or not taking it at all.
In March 2023, the New People political party proposed extending preferential university admission to war participants and children whose stepfathers fought against Ukraine.
Some universities offer additional benefits as their own initiative. The Higher School of Economics (HSE) exempts war-participating students from tuition fees, promising to transfer fee-paying students to state-funded places if they maintain a good academic record. The Russian State Social University (RSSU) covers tuition and dormitory accommodation for students with mobilized family members, while the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA) provides 300 scholarships for children of military personnel during the 2022–2023 academic year.
In October, Ural Federal University began offering financial assistance to students returning from the war and those whose fathers died or were severely wounded. Tatarstan's government decided to provide free meals to students of secondary vocational schools with a mobilized family member.
In May, the Ministry of Higher Education and Science issued a letter recommending support measures for war participants and their children in higher education institutions. These measures include:
Similar support measures were recommended by the Ministry of Education for pedagogical universities.
In May, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a decree allowing war participants and the families of deceased soldiers to retrain in “in-demand professions” at three universities: RANEPA, the Institute for Professional Development in Moscow, and Tomsk State University. Employers hiring these graduates will receive subsidies to support their employment.
Since the war in Ukraine began, universities have sought to eliminate anti-war voices, labeling dissent as immoral, forcing many to leave the university and, in some cases, the country.
HSE dismissed cultural studies associate professor Ilya Inishev and Perm branch associate professor Dinara Gagarina over anti-war social media posts deemed “immoral acts” by the university's ethics commission. Inishev posted on Facebook: “Russian warship, go fuck yourself!”, while Gagarina wrote:
“Like many around me, I think about the war all the time. Even if I'm intensely discussing some work-related topics, choosing a Minecraft T-shirt for my child, or laughing at a joke. The war is now a constant prism in my mind — for evaluating our actions, the strength of our feelings, checking values, and reformatting ourselves.”
The university administration cited parental complaints about Gagarina's posts. Dinara is attempting to sue the university, arguing that the Labour Code does not permit dismissal for an immoral act. Recently, Gagarina began teaching at the American University of Central Asia in Bishkek.
Denis Skopin, a lecturer at St. Petersburg State University's Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences, was also dismissed for an “immoral act incompatible with teaching” after being detained at an anti-mobilisation rally.
At Belgorod State University, Professor Tatyana Novikova was dismissed for “discrediting the Russian army” after being fined 30,000 rubles (US$350) for an anti-war comment on Russian social media VK. In court, Novikova explained that “emotional distress” over her nephew's death in Ukraine and the fate of her brothers, who had to sleep in Kharkiv basements in March.
“I couldn’t hold back my emotions or control my expressions, I couldn’t help but intervene in the conversation when the behavior of the woman holding the 'No to War' sign was being discussed, to which I responded, ‘Why, is it better to say yes to war?!’,” Novikova said.
At Bryansk State University, a history associate professor was dismissed for calling Russian soldiers “freshly fried cannon fodder in zinc dishes” on social media. At Pyatigorsk State University, associate professor Elena Kabakova was dismissed and fined for discrediting the Russian army after telling a student, whose stepfather fought in Ukraine, that she wished him “a glass wool grave”.
After an administrative case for discrediting the army, Pavel Kolosnitsyn, a lecturer at Novgorod State University, was dismissed following an anonymous complaint about his post on mobilization:
Simultaneously with Belousov's dismissal, St. Petersburg State University expelled seven students from the Institute of History, citing “defamation of the memory” of student Fedor Solomonov and “mockery” in publications on pro-war resources about a “russophobic cell” allegedly led by Belousov.
At Moscow State University, two journalism students were expelled for criticizing a classmate's “patriotic” action in university chats: the young man, wearing a t-shirt with pro-war symbols, was waving a Luhansk People's Republic flag on university grounds. The students pointed out that political actions are prohibited at the university and expressed concerns about selective punishment for anti-government statements. Prominent pro-war blogger Vladimir Solovyov highlighted the incident, posting screenshots of the students' dialogue on his Telegram channel, resulting in threats from pro-war activists.
Vladislav Igolinskyi, a second-year student at Russian Technology University, was expelled after the dormitory head reported his anti-war avatar on VK with a “No war” slogan and Ukrainian and Russian flags. The dormitory head posted Vladislav's avatar in a chat, leading to a screenshot being sent to the director. Vladislav was expelled without explanation and subsequently left the country.
Tomsk Polytechnic University expelled Bogdan Ovchinnikov following his anti-war protest with a “Tragedy” poster in March 2022, resulting in a 45,000 rubles (US$530) fine. After his expulsion, Bogdan relocated to Georgia.
“During the commission meeting, I heard a mini-lecture about how one shouldn't criticize the government during such times, shouldn't spit in the soldiers' backs, and that we ‘leave noone behind’. Once all the scum flee, they said, we'll establish communism here. After such revelations, I have little desire to return to this university,” Bogdan said.
Russian universities actively support military efforts through various means, including collecting aid for soldiers and collaborating with institutions in occupied territories.
Kuban State University sent instructors to Melitopol for methodological assistance, while Ural State Law University is training Melitopol teachers in Russian legislation. The Sverdlovsk Regional Student Teams pledged to send students to “rebuild the Donbas”.
Russian universities have established partnerships with institutions in occupied territories. In May 2024, Minister Falkov signed an order establishing partnerships between 23 Russian universities and 22 Luhansk and Donetsk universities.
Moscow State University, Saint Petersburg Mining University, Moscow State Law University, Ural State University of Economics, and St. Petersburg Polytechnic University have become partners with annexed republic’s universities, while HSE University signed a contract on “strategic partnership in the education sector” with Luhansk Republic authorities.
At the first educational forum in June, memorandums on “mutual understanding and cooperation in higher education” were signed between the Russian Ministry of Higher Education and Science and the republics' education ministries.
In Voronezh, a dance school's information board displayed posters comparing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky to Nazi Germany's Heinrich Himmler. Meanwhile, Novosibirsk State University decorated its dormitory hall with snowflakes featuring students' pictures and the pro-war Z symbols.
Novosibirsk State Medical University posted ads for the National Front, an organization fundraising for quadcopters and munitions for Luhansk and Donetsk soldiers.
Students at the Lipetsk branch of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration were forced to attend a propaganda TV show featuring former military or special forces officers. The show promised the audience a “real-time experience of special operation forces” and an immersive Donbass war experience.
Sociology and Politology first-year students of St. Petersburg State University were taken to a war-supporting lecture by State Duma Deputy Mikhail Romanov, including a far-right publicist Alexander Dugin's materials. Romanov claimed that “the construction of a unipolar world should be dismantled” as a result of the war.
In April 2022, Ural Federal University students collectively left a lecture about “the danger of Ukraine and NATO”. In October, Mordovia State University students attended a meeting with veterans of the Ukraine war. A soldier claimed that “most locals support the Russian army” and recounted an incident where an old woman offered homemade treats to Russian soldiers.
At Kazan Federal University, State Duma Deputy Oleg Morozov and political strategist Marat Bashirov, the former Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Luhansk People's Republic, delivered speeches on the Special military operation. Morozov urged to “bring the operation to a victorious end”, while Bashirov engaged with young people who do not watch television:
“You’re the TikTok generation, with a short attention span. You surf the Internet easily, but you haven’t yet figured out what’s true and what’s not. For you, what is happening now in Ukraine is the first major event of this magnitude.”
At Kuban Agrarian University, students were required to donate 300 rubles (US$3.50) each for the Russian army. Tambov University employees were asked to contribute 250 rubles (US$2.90) for soldiers' meals, while Voronezh University employees were required to donate a day's pay.
At Kazan Agrarian State University, staff and master's students raised funds for the Tatarstan battalion Timer, while Ural Federal University collected packages for the Wagner Group. The Higher School of Economics patriotic community, White Raven, donated FPV-drones to the Russian army, organized as a public ceremony.
The Ural State Medical University collected 350 kilograms (~772 lbs) of aid, Kazan Federal University gathered 400 kilograms (~882 lbs), and Bashkir State University urged students to donate socks, underwear, icons, and flags for soldiers.
At Kazan Federal University, students sewed clothes and equipment for Timer, Alga, and Bars battalions. Stretchers for the military were made at Pskov State University and St. Petersburg Electrotechnical State University. Students from Omsk, Surgut, Oryol, Altai State Universities, and the Siberian State Medical University helped distribute summonses during mobilization, while college students in Oryol, Krasnoyarsk, and Tomsk made “burzhuika” stoves (small metal stoves) for the army.
With the war's onset, the government expanded military training centers. In December 2022, Prime Minister Mishustin announced 16 new centers to begin operation in September 2023, including new locations at Novgorod, Smolensk, Sakhalin, and Astrakhan State Universities.
In 2023, authorities continued establishing military training centers. In February, Prime Minister Mishustin directed the creation of a center at Ufa University of Science and Technology. Kaluga and Maykop Universities prepared to open centers, while the Magadan region announced a new center at North-Eastern Federal University.
After mobilization began, the Russian Ministry of Defence encouraged university graduates to join research units — special military divisions within Russian research organizations. Authorities visited universities nationwide, such as Kazan Federal University and Novosibirsk State University, to promote these units.
Novosibirsk State Technical University students were encouraged to join research units within Russian Armed Forces' in exchange for their academic failures being waived. Ural Federal University students received email invitations to join National Guard research units. Recruitment announcements appeared on websites of several institutions, including Moscow State University, Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Kazan Federal University, Ural Federal University, and Novosibirsk State University.
