The ‘Open Doors Olympiad’ for int’l students wishing to study at Russian universities kicks off

The ‘Open Doors Olympiad’ has been held since 2017, attracting over 150,000 participants annually. It’s organized by the Global Universities Association, which comprises 24 leading Russian universities, including Bauman Moscow State Technical University, ITMO National Research University, the Higher School of Economics and MGIMO. The competition is supported by the Russian Ministry of Education and the Federal Agency for the Commonwealth of Independent States, Compatriots Living Abroad and International Humanitarian Cooperation (‘Rossotrudnichestvo’).

The Olympiad is held online in Russian and English across four tracks (undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and postdoctoral) and 14 fields of study, including economics, AI, urban studies, biotechnology, linguistics, medicine, engineering and others. Foreign citizens are eligible to participate: the bachelor’s track is for applicants aged 16 to 23; the master's track is for students aged 20 to 33 completing their bachelor’s degree; the doctoral track is for students aged 22 to 35 completing their specialist or master's degree; and the postdoctoral track is for applicants aged 24 to 39 holding a candidate's or doctoral degree (PhD).

By November 1, contest participants must select the academic track and specialization in which they will compete and create their portfolios. The first stage of the competition will conclude on November 13; in the second stage, participants will have to complete tasks of varying levels of difficulty. The winners of the master's and bachelor’s tracks will be announced on December 21. The third stage of the Olympiad is open to postgraduate students, who will undergo interviews with their future academic supervisors and research project leaders. The results will be announced on February 27, 2027.

Olympiad winners will have the opportunity to enroll at one of the association's participating universities within the Russian Federation government's quota and those who perform best in the postdoctoral track may be offered a teaching position. If necessary, they can take preparatory Russian language courses free of charge.