Special achievement scholarships: who are eligible and how to apply?

Vladimir Savinov is the Head of the Department for Youth Affairs at St Petersburg University. We talked with him about scholarship competitions for talented University students.

Every year, St Petersburg University holds scholarship competitions and also students are helped to find and apply for external scholarships. Who is eligible for these merit-based scholarships?

First of all, St Petersburg University students who excel academically can apply for: the advanced state academic scholarship; the scholarship of the Government of St Petersburg for students of educational institutions of higher and secondary vocational education; the Academician Merkuriev scholarship; and individual scholarships for outstanding

achievements in sports for St Petersburg University students. They are also eligible for the Russian Presidential scholarship for students and graduate students of educational institutions of higher education, including education abroad. Additionally, the government of St Petersburg has a compatriots’ scholarship programme for students from the Baltic states and a scholarship programme for disadvantaged children, deprived of parental care.

Secondly, I should highlight the possibilities of financial support for students who demonstrate very good academic performance and strong talent in a particular field of knowledge. Thus, the government of St Petersburg awards the Starovoitova scholarship to high achievers in humanities and the Petrov scholarship to gifted musical arts students. There are also merit-based scholarships for students who excel in physics, mathematics, chemistry, the Russian language and information technology. In fact, the list of notable scholarships is quite long: Lomonosov scholarship for chemistry students; Ivanovsky scholarship for students in biology and medicine; Verbitskaya scholarship for students studying the Russian language and culture; Mavrodin scholarship for history students; Tugarinov scholarship for students in philosophy, ethics and theology; Academician Fursenko scholarship for students who study history, sociology, economics and political science; Academician Piotrovsky scholarship for students in Asian and African studies; Academician Bogoliubov scholarships for students studying Asian and African languages, and so on.

The University encourages students in priority fields of study to participate in scholarship competitions targeted at particular areas of study or knowledge. What are the scholarship opportunities, say, for a mathematics student who is actively pursuing research work?

A student whose major area of study is mathematics can apply for the Rector’s scholarship for master’s students in physics, mathematics and natural sciences. In fact, there’s a list of scholarships targeted at particular areas of knowledge. They include notable scholarships of the government of St Petersburg: Granin scholarship for students in linguistics and literary studies; Alferov scholarship for physicists; the ‘Talent, creativity, efforts’ scholarship; Gaidar scholarship for economists; Likhachev scholarship for students in philology and cultural studies; Sobchak scholarship for law students; Voznesensky scholarship for journalism and literature students; Academician Mitrofanov scholarship for students in geology; and Tumanov scholarships for undergraduate and graduate law students. Besides, future economists who excel in academic, research, and practice-oriented activities can win a merit-based scholarship for economics students.

It is necessary to highlight funding opportunities for the University students in priority fields of study. Thus, the President of Russia Scholarship programme for students and postgraduate students is open to those, who study in the fields of priority for the technological modernisation of the Russian economy. There is also a scholarship programme of the Government of the Russian Federation for students and postgraduate students of state institutions of higher education.

What are scholarship opportunities for PhD students?

For more information on scholarship competitions, please visit the St Petersburg University portal.

Postgraduate students have the opportunity to take part in competitive selections for scholarships of the President of the Russian Federation, including scholarships to study abroad and scholarships of the Government of the Russian Federation for postgraduate students. There are scholarships of the President of the Russian Federation and the

Government of the Russian Federation for postgraduate students specialising in the fields of priority for the technological modernisation of the Russian economy; Tumanov Memorial scholarships for graduate students in law; and Vernadsky Foundation scholarships for students who study environmental science.

Additionally, the University has established a Special Rector’s Scholarships for St Petersburg University doctoral students. University students can also participate in a grants competition for students and graduate students of universities and academic institutes located in St Petersburg.

In order to receive the advanced state academic scholarship (ASAS), a student has to excel in academic subjects and should also demonstrate other achievements. Could you elaborate on that?

To be eligible for the ASAS, students must have good and excellent marks, as well as achievements in one or several other categories: Science and Research; Culture and Art; Sport; and Social activities. Criteria for the ASAS are defined and approved taking into account the opinion of student councils at the faculties. They follow the guidelines for awarding the advanced state academic scholarships, approved by order of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation of 27 December2016 No 1663.

The criteria for the ASAS may differ slightly between academic departments due to specificities of a particular field of study. The criteria are published here.

How to apply for the advanced state academic scholarship?

Currently, work is underway to implement the electronic application system. The system was developed at the IT clinic at St Petersburg University with the active participation of students. It functions as follows: students enter the system using their usernames and passwords; then they enter information about their achievements, attach relevant documents and fill in an application form. The system allows students to follow the comments of their reviewers.

Please tell us about the competitive selection process. Who counts the points, how is the ranking list compiled and can an appeal be filed?

Shortly before the deadline for applying for the scholarship, student councils at the faculties set up a commission for scholarships. The commission works together with Deputy Heads of the Department for Youth Affairs at St Petersburg University to check the application forms. After the check is complete, the University ranking list is compiled. Next, there are appeals. Students who submitted application forms using the electronic application service file appeals in the system. If necessary, they attach the requested documents for the members of the commission to assess. For other students, appeals are conducted either offline or via video conferencing platforms, such as MS Teams, ZOOM or others.

After the appeals have been settled, the final decision on awarding the ASAS is made at a meeting of the Scholarship Committee for academic departments and programmes in particular fields of study.

What is the amount of the advanced state academic scholarship?

The amount of the ASAS is determined in accordance with the procedure approved for the current year. The amount of the monthly allowance depends on: the scholarship fund allocated by St Petersburg University for the calendar year; the number of recipients (no more than 10% of students receiving a state academic scholarship in the corresponding academic semester); and on the student’s position in the ranking. Back in 2013, the Student Council of St Petersburg University proposed five categories of students eligible for the ASAS with coefficients from 1.2 to 0.8 for each field of study. You can read more about this in the resolution of the Academic Council of St Petersburg University.