Submit Application 1. General Provisions
1.1. The Regulations for Admission to the Non-Degree Programme "Preparatory Course (for Foreign Citizens)" in 2026 (hereinafter referred to as the Regulations for Admission, the Regulations) specify the provisions for admission of foreign citizens and stateless persons (hereinafter referred to as applicants, persons, foreign citizens, enrollees) at Federal State Budgetary Educational Institution of Higher Education "St Petersburg State University" to study in the non-degree programme "Preparatory Course (for Foreign Citizens)" (hereinafter referred to as the Non-Degree Programme "Preparatory Course (for Foreign Citizens)") and set out the conditions, policy and procedures of enrolment at St Petersburg University.
1.2. These Regulations have been developed in compliance with Federal Law No 273-FZ on December 29, 2012 "On Education in the Russian Federation", Federal Law No 152-FZ on July 27, 2006 "On Personal Data", Federal Law No 115-FZ on July 25, 2002 "On the Legal Status of Foreign Nationals in the Russian Federation", Federal Law No 109-FZ on July 18, 2006 "On Migration Registration of Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons in the Russian Federation", Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No 9 on January 15, 2007 (as amended on 04.12.2024) "On Regulations for Migration Registration of Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons in the Russian Federation", Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No 2150 on December 18, 2020 "On Establishing Educational Quota for Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons in the Russian Federation", Order of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation (Minprosvesheniya Rossii) No 629 on July 27, 2022 "On Approving the Procedure for Organising and Implementing Educational Activity in Additional General Educational Programmes", Order of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation No 1378 on November 3, 2020 (as amended on 03.04.2023) "On Approving the Procedure of Selecting Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons for Training within the Established by the Government of the Russian Federation Educational Quota for Training Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons in the Russian Federation and Requirements Applied to Them", Order of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation No 623 on August 8, 2025 "On Approving the List of Federal State Educational Institutions at Whose Preparatory Departments, Preparatory Faculties Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons Applying for the Admission within the Educational Quota for Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons Established by the Government of the Russian Federation are Entitled to Study in Additional General Educational Programmes Ensuring Training for Mastering Professional Programmes in Russian on the Government- Funded Places in the Academic Year of 2026/2027", other federal regulations and by-laws, the Charter and by-laws of St Petersburg University.
2. Acceptance of Documents
2.1. Persons who have at least secondary general or secondary vocational education level, confirmed respectively by a document on secondary general education or a document on secondary vocational education or an equivalent document on education of a foreign state, are allowed to participate in the competitive selection.
2.2. The University shall admit foreign citizens to study in the non-degree programme "Preparatory Course (for Foreign Citizens)":
2.2.1. on the government-funded places;
2.2.2. on places under contracts for chargeable educational services paid for by individuals and/or legal entities — pursuant to the competition results.
2.3. To enter the competition for admission on the fee-paying places, foreign citizens must submit the following documents:
2.3.1. an application for admission to the non-degree programme "Preparatory Course (for Foreign Citizens)" in the established format;
2.3.2. an applicant's identity document with a notarized translation into Russian, valid for at least 18 months from the date of enrolment (1 September 2026);
2.3.3. a standard education credential of secondary general education or secondary vocational education with a supplement (if the latter provided by the legislation of the state of issuance), or higher education with a supplement;
2.3.4. a document issued by a medical institution in the country of the applicant's residence confirming the absence of medical contraindications for studying, separates certificates from a psychiatrist and a narcologist;
2.3.5. four (4) applicant's photographs (3x4 cm, taken during the current calendar year);
2.3.6. consent to the processing of personal data;
2.3.7. a copy of a document issued by a medical institution in the candidate's country of residence confirming the absence of medical contraindications for studying in the Russian Federation, including confirmation of the absence of all types of hepatitis and tuberculosis;
2.3.8. a copy of a document issued by a medical institution in the candidate's country of residence confirming the absence of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease (HIV infection). For candidates suffering from the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease (HIV infection), if the said candidates have family members (spouse, children (including adopted), parents (including adoptive) who are citizens of the Russian Federation or foreign citizens or stateless persons permanently residing in the territory of the Russian Federation, and provided there are no violations by them of the legislation of the Russian Federation on preventing the spread of HIV infection, the said document is not submitted by the candidate;
2.3.9. results of mandatory preliminary medical examinations (when applying for training in specialties and fields of study included in the list of specialties and fields of study, upon admission to which applicants undergo mandatory preliminary medical examinations (examinations) in the manner established when concluding an employment contract or service contract for the relevant position or specialty, approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 697 of August 14, 2013).
2.4. Applicants when applying for participation in the competition shall submit their documents, specified in Clause 2.3 herein, in electronic digital form through the Personal Account of the Preparatory Department (https://prep.spbu.ru/Account/Register).
2.5. The application for admission to the Non-Degree Programme "Preparatory Course (for Foreign Citizens)" is generated by the applicant in their Personal Account. To submit the application, the applicant fills in all mandatory fields, prints the application and confirms the accuracy of the provided information by putting their handwritten signature.
2.6. When submitting the application in electronic digital form, the documents specified in Clause 2.3 of these Regulations are provided by the applicant as scanned copies by attaching the corresponding files to the registration form in the applicant's Personal Account. Said documents must be scanned in colour or greyscale format with a resolution of 200 or 300 dots per inch. It is not allowed to provide illegible scanned images of documents, as well as images containing losses of significant parts of the document (text areas, signatures, stamp impressions, etc.). For the identity document and the citizenship of the applicant, the pages containing the applicant's photograph, surname, name, patronymic, gender, date and place of birth, citizenship, series and number of the relevant document, information about the state authority that issued the relevant document, as well as information about the applicant's place of registration must be scanned and provided. Similarly, a photograph of the applicant is submitted by attaching a file to the registration form in the applicant's Personal Account (the applicant's photograph must be taken in the current calendar year and must have a size of at least 800 pixels vertically and 600 pixels horizontally). Each document must be uploaded as a single file with a correct name reflecting its content. It is not allowed to attach one document as separate files without a correct name.
2.7. In the application, a foreign citizen confirms by personal signature the fact of familiarisation with these Admission Regulations, the Charter of St Petersburg University, the License for Educational Activities of St Petersburg University, the Certificate of State Accreditation of St Petersburg University, the Rules of Stay of Foreign Citizens in the Territory of the Russian Federation established by Federal Law No. 115-FZ of July 25, 2002 (as amended on July 31, 2025) "On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the Russian Federation" (as amended and supplemented, effective from September 1, 2025).
2.8. The grounds for refusal to admit an applicant to participate in the competition are:
2.8.1. provision of an incomplete set of documents;
2.8.2. absence of a personal signature in the application;
2.8.3. provision of illegible copies of documents;
2.8.4. provision of inaccurate information;
2.8.5. non-compliance with the requirements for participation in the competition for admission to study under the Non-Degree Programme "Preparatory Course (for Foreign Citizens)" established by the legislation of the Russian Federation and these Regulations;
2.8.6. provision of documents for participation in the competition after the deadlines for submission of documents established by these Regulations.
3. Deadlines for filing documents and competitive selection procedure
3.1. The University accepts documents from foreign citizens applying for the admission to the places specified in sub-clause 2.2.1. herein in compliance with Order of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation No 1378 on November 3, 2020 (as amended on 03.04.2023) "On Approving the Procedure of Selecting Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons for Training within the Established by the Government of the Russian Federation Educational Quota for Training Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons in the Russian Federation and Requirements Applied to Them", and is carried out by the representative offices of Rossotrudnichestvo in foreign countries.
3.2. The University shall accept documents from foreign citizens applying for the admission to study on the fee-paying places at the premises of St Petersburg University and outside exclusively with the use of distance learning technologies, e-learning in the period from February 3, 2026 to August 25, 2026.
3.3. The period for accepting documents from foreign applicants applying for the admission to the fee-paying places can be extended upon the decision of the Rector or an authorized officer.
3.4. For each candidate within the framework of the competitive selection for admission to fee-paying places, a decision is made on recommendation or refusal of such recommendation for admission.
3.5. The decision on recommending for enrolment shall be made considering the provided sets of documents and taking into account the average score in general education disciplines corresponding to the field of study. The average score must be not less than 80% of the maximum possible. The University shall have the right to recommend an applicant for enrolment before the end of the document acceptance period.
3.6. The Admissions Committee reserves the right to refuse an applicant admission to the Non-Degree Programme "Preparatory Course (for Foreign Citizens)" without giving reasons. A letter of refusal is sent to the email address indicated by the applicant when registering.
3.7. The lists of the applicants recommended for enrolment to the non-degree programme "Preparatory Course (for Foreign Citizens)" to study both at the premises of St Petersburg University and outside the premises of St Petersburg University exclusively with the use of distance learning technologies, e-learning shall be published on the official website of St Petersburg University not later than August 29, 2026.
3.8. The University shall enroll foreign citizens to the places specified in sub-clause 2.2.1. herein upon the referrals issued by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation within the period determined by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Russia.
3.9. The University shall enroll applicants to the fee-paying places based on the decision of the Rector or an authorized officer after the contract for education has been signed and tuition fee payment under the contract has been executed.
4. Final Provisions
4.1. St Petersburg University may announce additional admissions, including the one outside the admission period established by the Regulations, provided there are vacant places.
4.2. The University shall issue invitations to enter the Russian Federation only for the applicants recommended for enrolment provided the restrictions preventing entry into the territory of the Russian Federation are lifted. The University shall not issue invitations for applicants for the purpose of submitting documents, participating in the competition and other purposes.