Question: I have obtained a scholarship to study Master and PhD in Climate Modifications, and I would like Professor Doctor Pavel Pawlovich Arapov to supervise me and send me an acceptance lettter, so that I may complete my scholarship arrangements. Yours sincerely
The answer of Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs Ekaterina Babelyuk: Thank you for your letter.
Please, specify what degree you are interested in. Is it Master or PhD degree?
Holders of Bachelor Diploma (period of study – 4 years) or Specialist Diploma (study period not less than 5 years) can apply for Master Degree Program. Holders of Specialist or Master diploma can apply for PhD degree program.
Admission for Master and PhD programs is realized in accordance with the results of admission tests, so SPbU doesn't issue acceptance letters for the persons applying for Main Programmes of Higher Education or Postgraduate Education before they pass admission tests.
To be enrolled onto a main educational programme at SPbU you will have to do the following.
I. Choose a programme you are interested in.
You can find the list of programmes onto which applicants will be admitted in 2012 at SPbU official website www.spbu.ru (see the Admissions Committee’s page www.abiturient.spbu.ru). The list and modes of admissions tests as well as the 2012 Regulations for Admission of Foreign Applicants to Main Programmes of Higher Professional Education at Saint Petersburg University can also be found on this page. The above-mentioned information will be available within a period specified by the Russian Ministry of Education and Science (on or prior to February 1, 2012).
II. Obtain your qualifications equivalence certificate.
According to Russian Federal Law No. 125-ФЗ “On University-Level Professional Education” (Article 23, Paragraph 2), the equivalence of foreign university-level qualifications means that the respective governmental bodies of the Russian Federation grant the holders of such certificates the same academic and/or professional rights that they grant to the holders of Russian state-recognised documents of university-level education.
When you apply for taking part in the competition you will have to submit your original educational credentials and supplements (if the latter are specified by the laws of the state that issued your educational credentials) legalised in accordance with the established procedure. These documents must be considered equivalent by the laws of the Russian Federation to state-recognised educational credentials issued in Russia. Another way is to submit certified copies of the above-mentioned documents instead of their originals. You will also have to submit a certified Russian translation of your educational credentials and supplements.
To learn more about the conditions and procedure of obtaining a qualifications equivalence certificate for documents issued by a foreign state please visit www.glavex.ru, the official website of the Primary State Centre for Expert Evaluation of Education (“Glavexpertcentre”) which is a Russian federal state-financed research institution authorised by the Federal Education and Science Supervision Service (Rosobrnadzor) to recognise the equivalence of foreign university-level educational credentials within the Russian Federation.
III. Make a decision in what type of competition you will take part to be admitted at SPbU.
You may apply either within an admission quota set by the Russian Government (Order No. 638 as of August 25, 2008 “On Cooperation with Foreign Countries in the Sphere of Education”) or on the fee-paying (contractual) basis.
To take part in a competitive selection to be enrolled onto main educational programmes of higher professional education (bachelor’s degree, specialist degree, master’s degree) or PhD programmes on the state-financed basis you can apply either to Saint-Petersburg State University or the Ministry of Education of the Syrian Arab Republic.
In case you choose to apply directly to SPbU to submit an admission application and necessary documents, you will have to take part in a procedure of selecting candidates for state-financed admissions. The 2011 regulations for selection of candidates to be admitted to Saint Petersburg State University onto main educational programmes of higher professional education (bachelor’s degree, specialist degree, master’s degree) financed by the Federal Government of the Russian Federation according to Order No. 638 as of August 25, 2008 “On Cooperation with Foreign Countries in the Sphere of Education” can be found at the official website of SPbU Admissions Committee (Section “Information for foreign citizens”).
To be enrolled on the fee-paying (contractual) basis you will have to submit documents needed for your participation in the competition within a period specified by the 2012 Regulations for Admission of Foreign Applicants to Main Programmes of Higher Professional Education at Saint Petersburg State University, pass admissions tests and be selected on a competitive basis to be enrolled onto the chosen programme. Tuition fees will be specified by a respective SPbU local act on or prior to June 1, 2012.
IV. Submit documents needed to take part in the competition.
In 2011, foreign applicants applying for admission to SPbU educational programmes had to submit the following:
1. an application for admission to an educational programme in the form prescribed by the Admissions Committee;
2. either original educational credentials and supplements considered equivalent to state-recognised educational credentials by the laws of the Russian Federation and legalised in accordance with the established procedure (if required) or state-recognised educational credentials issued in the Russian Federation or their certified copies;
3. a certified Russian translation of your educational credentials and supplements (if required);
4. a copy of an identity document of a foreign citizen in the Russian Federation, in accordance with Article 10 of the Federal Law No. 115-ФЗ as of July 25, 2002 (“On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the Russian Federation”);
5. a copy of the entry visa to the Russian Federation (in case a foreign citizen entered Russia on an entry visa) specifying the purpose of the visit to the Russian Federation: “to study at SPbU”;
6. a copy of the migration card ;
7. a receipt confirming that the applicant is informed on the regulations for foreign citizens on staying in the Russian Federation;
8. six photos 3x4 cm.
Foreign citizens applying to SPbU to be enrolled onto main educational programmes of higher professional education or PhD programmes within an admission quota set by the Russian Government in Order No. 638 as of August 25, 2008 (“On Cooperation with Foreign Countries in the Sphere of Education”) had to submit, in addition to documents specified in items 1-8, a reference from the Russian Ministry of Education and Science.
An applicant has the right to submit a personal application for admission and documents either in person or send them by post.
Foreign citizens may submit their documents in electronic form through SPbU official website when they apply for the competition.
V. Pass admissions tests.
The list, modes and dates of admissions tests for foreign applicants independently held by SPbU when selecting applicants to be enrolled onto main educational programmes of higher professional education, including additional admissions tests, will be specified at the official website of SPbU Admissions Committee on or prior to February 1, 2012.
Instruction in Saint-Petersburg State University is provided in Russian except some Master's programs, therefore foreign citizens applying to SPbU have to take a Test of Russian as a Foreign Language (TORFL). If you have a certificate of an appropriate level it can be accepted as your Russian language test result.
All non-resident and foreign applicants are accommodated in the halls of residence for the period of application and admissions tests. The cost of accommodation will be specified by respective orders in 2012.
We also feel it necessary to recommend you to study regulatory documents and other official information about SPbU admissions process at www.spbu.ru. The Admissions Committee’s page is www.abiturient.spbu.ru. Among other things, it contains a section devoted to admissions of foreign applicants to university-level educational programmes. Your rights and interests will be legally protected if you keep yourself informed on all major aspects of admissions organisation.