In 2026, the Russian higher education system enters a phase of severe contraction, demonstrating a deep funding crisis and strategic degradation, UNN reports with reference to the Foreign Intelligence Service.
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According to intelligence, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation announced the elimination of another 45,000 paid places in universities – about 13% of the total. The blow affects not only state but also commercial institutions, so the specialties that traditionally formed the basis of the civilian labor market will suffer the most: law, economics, management, advertising, public relations. Even dentistry and oil and gas, which were previously considered profitable areas, were cut.
At the same time, universities are sharply increasing tuition fees. At the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, the annual payment exceeds one million rubles regardless of the specialty, which effectively cuts off a significant part of potential applicants. In addition, new barriers are being introduced – requirements for victories in scientific Olympiads, which further narrows access to prestigious programs.
The Kremlin is also depriving students of the opportunity to receive preferential loans at 3% for studying in specialties that the state considers "unnecessary." As of today, these are 28 bachelor's and 12 specialist programs. Thus, tens of thousands of young people are left without financial instruments to obtain an education, the intelligence service added.
These steps are taking place against the backdrop of a demographic peak: the generation of the mid-2000s, when the birth rate in the Russian Federation was growing, is graduating from schools. The demand for education is increasing, but the state is not ready to meet it. The reasons are obvious – lack of funds in the budget, the regime's need for soldiers and workers, and the desire to make universities as dependent as possible on the central government. As a result, higher education in the Russian Federation is turning into an instrument of control, not development, which only deepens the country's social and economic stagnation.