Profession for a million. How much do Russian universities ask for tuition in 2022

And also the economic crisis, which does not add confidence to applicants. Novye Izvestia found out how much the “tower” costs now and how justified this price is.

Alexander Dybin

Experts interviewed by Novye Izvestia note that this year universities have been instructed not to raise the price of education above the inflation rate. But not everyone listened to it. We studied the prices of the leading universities in the country and came to a conclusion. Prices bite. Nevertheless, it is still possible to find a higher education on your pocket, but for this you will have to sacrifice prestige, and, probably, the quality of education. Experts agree that top universities are expensive because they attract the best teachers.

Probably the most famous Russian university, Moscow State University named after Lomonosov, reacted conservatively to pricing in 2022. He has not changed the price of training since 2019. But even without it, it's not budget friendly. The range of prices for full-time undergraduate education (hereinafter, all prices will be given specifically for this option) is not large from 390 to 436 thousand rubles. And one of the most expensive specialties is innovation. The Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology is close in price: one of the cheapest specialties is "applied mathematics and computer science" - 324 thousand, the most expensive: "nuclear physics and technology" and "technical physics" - 420 thousand rubles a year. Against this background, MEPhI looks very democratic, from 128,000 for “business informatics” to 165,000 for “nuclear physics”.

Records beat the next two metropolitan universities. At the Higher School of Economics, the price range is from 390,000 to 770,000 per year. The maximum cost is asked for the specialty "public policy and social sciences". MGIMO turned out to be the champion, where a year of study at the most inexpensive specialty "International Environmental Problems" will cost 561 thousand rubles. And the specialty "international finance" has almost overcome the psychological mark of one million rubles - 998 thousand per year of study.

In St. Petersburg, the leader in terms of payment is St. Petersburg State University, where they ask for 569 thousand rubles for "international management". But there are also "inexpensive" specialties: "museology and protection of objects of cultural and natural heritage" - 225 thousand, "arts and crafts and folk crafts" - 219 thousand. At Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, the most expensive profession was "design" - 400 thousand per year, and the most affordable "Applied Mathematics and Informatics" - 200 thousand. At ITMO, the price range is from 208 to 283 thousand, and at the Mining University, education costs 400 thousand, regardless of the direction.

In Rostov-on-Don at the Southern Federal University, the price range is from 102 thousand per year in the pedagogical direction and 155 thousand in architecture. In Tomsk Polytechnic from 149 to 295 thousand, Ural Federal University from 150 thousand to 286.

State Duma deputy, first deputy chairman of the committee on education, Yana Lantratova, believes that there are questions about the size of the cost of education in universities.

“Often, higher education becomes a service for wealthy people. First of all, because there are much fewer budget places than those who want to study, - the deputy told Novye Izvestia, - many parents are forced to first pay for the services of tutors in order to prepare the child for admission, and then also the education itself at the university. They talk about it all the time. Those who entered the budget, too, sometimes have a hard time. Scholarships, as you know, they have very small. At every meeting with students, the guys tell me that we need to increase the size of the scholarship. I agree that it should not be lower than the minimum wage. Our faction came up with such an initiative. Sociological surveys show that most of the students combine study with work. Many do not have enough money to live. It takes time away from studying. And, often, the guys drop out of school, give up the opportunity to do science, and educational institutions lose talented young people”.

Member of the Public Chamber of Russia Oleg Dubrovin, who previously worked as vice-rector of South Ural State University (Chelyabinsk), believes that in the current conditions, paid education is not available to everyone, but nevertheless remains the best investment in your child.

“Of course, it is expensive, and the price is not for everyone,” the expert says, “but on the other hand, this is the best investment in education, in the future of your children. In addition, there are plenty of opportunities to enroll in budget places. And the high price is a serious motivation for children to study at school and enter the budget.”

The rector of the Bashkir Academy of Public Administration and Administration under the head of the Republic of Bashkortostan, Daniyar Abdrakhmanov , notes that in addition to top universities, there are many other academic institutions that, although not so prestigious, but allow you to get a higher education at an affordable price. And this year the situation for such universities, most of which are regional, is just favorable, since there are practically no opportunities to go to study abroad, and the economic situation will leave those applicants who considered studying in the capitals at home. Therefore, universities in the regions build their pricing policy with an eye on neighboring regions and the economic situation.

“Each university conducts its own calculation, we try to keep affordable prices, lower than in other universities in the region, for the first time in 30 years of existence, we received federal budget places,” the expert says, “if we talk about the top segment, yes, there is an image moment, the university takes a certain cost for a big name. In many ways, this is justified, since these funds are used to pay for highly qualified teachers.

Senator Lyudmila Skakovskaya , who previously worked as the rector of Tver State University, in an interview with a Novye Izvestia correspondent noted that she considers the current tuition prices to be quite reasonable.

“The cost of training is calculated not only depending on the region, but also depending on the demand and potential salary of a specialist in a particular specialty,” says the senator. - The Higher School of Economics annually conducts a study of the results of the summer admission campaign to Russian universities. Based on the monitoring, it can be concluded that the most expensive areas in the country on average are design, as well as areas related to water and air transport, oriental studies and art. These are not only very popular, but also very well-paid professions. It is also important to remember that the funds received by the university for education go to the most necessary things for the university. First of all, for the salaries of teachers, employees and attendants of the university, repairs of classrooms, the purchase of technical facilities, etc. In general, various factors influence the cost of education: the status of the university, the territorial coefficient, performance indicators, the demand for a specialty in the labor market, the form of education, etc. educational services".

When talking about the cost of studying at a university, it is important to see the whole picture at once, how much you have to pay for the entire period of study, and how much a graduate will receive after training. So, in order to get a diploma of a specialist in the same museum business at St. Petersburg State University, you will have to pay a million. And if you go to work in your specialty, how much will a young museum worker earn? 20-30 thousand per month? How much will such a diploma fight back? According to the rector of the Bashkir Academy of Public Administration Daniyar Abdrakhmanov, even such calculations will not discourage the desire to get a higher education.

“There are social attitudes in society that require compulsory higher education”, - the expert says, “but there is another trend when parents or an applicant understand that it is enough for them to get a secondary education level and focus on work that immediately brings a justified income. But in my opinion, this is the wrong strategy. So you can stay out of life. Studying at a university becomes an extension of youth, when a person does not face the need for employment, creating a family, does not have to bear obligations, but can devote himself not to study, to creativity. He will lose all this when he goes to work”.

Senator Lyudmila Skakovskaya notes that there is an imbalance in the country towards an increase in budget places. So, in the upcoming academic year, more than 64% of school graduates will be able to apply for budget places, and in 2023 - 67%. In 2022, 588 thousand people will be able to enroll in state-funded places, which is 11.5 thousand people more than last year's admission campaign.

“It should be emphasized that the number of allocated budget places for Russian applicants remains the same. Applicants from the LPR and DPR can enter the universities of the Russian Federation under the government quota for teaching foreign citizens, which has been increased for the upcoming academic year and amounted to 23,000 places, the senator says, it is important to note that there are many support programs for students studying on a fee basis. For example, you can pay for education with maternity capital or using an educational loan. At the beginning of 2022, Sberbank offers an interest rate of 15.37% per annum, of which the borrower pays only 3%, and the rest is compensated by the state. Do not forget that students who study “excellent” and “good” have a very good chance of transferring to the budget if budget places are vacated in the direction, which happens quite often”.