Sergey Kravtsov: Winners of Olympiads and World Champions Are Applying to Pedagogical Universities
Pedagogical universities under the Russian Ministry of Education have completed the acceptance of applications for state-funded places in bachelor's, specialist, and basic higher education programs. Documents were submitted by 443,107 applicants. The total number of applications in the field of "Education and Pedagogical Sciences" has already reached 690,365 – 26% more than in 2025 (551.5 thousand).
"The competition for state-funded places in pedagogical fields of study at our universities has exceeded last year's figure. In the 2025/26 admissions campaign, there were 12 applications per place; now there are more than 14. I am confident that the young people coming to pedagogical universities have consciously chosen the path of a teacher. After all, a teacher is someone who lays the foundation for the country's future achievements, helps children's talents unfold, and largely determines who will become the next Mendeleev or Tsiolkovsky. I would like to remind you that raising the prestige of the teaching profession is one of our key tasks. We are working consistently in this direction, and an important step was the signing by the President of Russia of a decree on additional support measures for teachers", commented Sergey Kravtsov.
In 2026, applicants have the opportunity to submit documents both in person and using the "Admission to University Online" super-service on the "Gosuslugi" portal. The state-funded enrollment targets in the "Education and Pedagogical Sciences" field amounted to 37,516 budget places.
The leaders in the number of applications were: Moscow Pedagogical State University (108,813) , Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia (86,113) , Ural State Pedagogical University (56,654) , Novosibirsk State Pedagogical University (47,715) , and Kozma Minin Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University (33,368) .
At Moscow Pedagogical State University, the number of applicants to teacher training programs for subject teachers, educational psychologists, and special education teachers increases by 20–25% annually. The number of applicants wishing to become teachers of natural science subjects has also grown significantly.
For talented first-year students at Herzen University, increased scholarships will be introduced starting September 1: the maximum monthly payment will be 35,000 rubles. The university has received more than 170 applications from winners and prize-winners of school Olympiads.
The 2026 admissions campaign at Ural State Pedagogical University was marked by record results: one applicant to the "Pedagogical Education (with two specializations). English and Chinese Languages" program submitted documents with the maximum score of 310 competitive points.
Among the applicants are winners of Olympiads, world champions in various sports, and recipients of state awards. Additionally, the university is actively strengthening international cooperation: 218 citizens from 23 countries have submitted documents.
Furthermore, universities subordinate to the Russian Ministry of Education are offering applicants new opportunities for professional development. For example, Minin University has opened admissions for the first time to engineering profiles: "Industrial Engineering," "Chemistry," and "Condensed Matter Physics," which combine pedagogy, IT, and natural sciences. To introduce these programs, the university organized an Open House Night.
The admissions campaign at pedagogical universities under the Russian Ministry of Education began on June 20 and will end in late August. Competitive selections are currently underway at the institutions.
It should be recalled that in 2026, pedagogical universities graduated more than 66,000 specialists. Nearly a third – 18,000 people – received honors degrees. In the previous admissions campaign, applicants submitted 511,533 applications, 469,435 of which were for bachelor's, specialist, and basic higher education programs.