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Regular version of the site

Frequently Asked Questions

I don’t speak Russian. How can I apply?

Short answer: you’re more than welcome to apply for our English-taught Bachelor’s or Master’s programmes in Social and Political Sciences, Law, History, Oriental Studies, Economics, Management and Computer Science. 

Long answer: it’s crucial to pay attention to the language of instruction while applying. Sometimes it might be confusing, when you surf a dozen of programmes of different universities. But we’ve gathered all information about international admissions at HSE University – St. Petersburg here. You can find description of the programmes, application deadlines, entry requirements and other useful information. And don’t worry, if you choose programme taught in English all your entrance trials also will be in English. 

Do you give scholarships?

Short answer: yes, we do. 

Long answer: every year we provide restricted number of merit-based scholarships to the most outstanding applicants. Scholarships cover a substantial part of the annual tuition fee: for Bachelor’s programme – 25-70%, for Master’s programmes – 25-50%. The scholarship is awarded automatically upon successful completion of the entrance trials. No additional application is required to submit. It’s simple: the better you perform during entrance trials, the higher scholarship you get.

I’m interested in a few fields of study. Which programme should I choose?

Short answer: toss a coin. When it is in the air, you suddenly know what you are hoping for. 

Long answer: all of us desire to explore many fields and opportunities. Bearing this in mind, we’ve developed a flexible study system that allows students to choose an individual educational track to acquire knowledge in the areas that are interesting and important for them. Our students choose electives from the approved curriculum and form their individual curricula. For example, those who study Political Science may learn subjects from other disciplines like Law or Finance. 

What if I’m not be able to come for my entrance trial, because I live abroad?

Short answer: besides on-campus entrance trials which are held every Thursday and Friday in June and July, you’re always welcome to pass them online. But we’re kindly asking you not to forget to check your webcam, microphone and the internet in advance. 

Long answer: how awesome to live in the 21 century, when Information technologies give us a lot of opportunities! Literally, it means that all our overseas applicants are allowed to choose online mode to pass entrance trials (proctoring) instead of taking them on the campus. Online mode is not particularly different from what we usually imagine thinking of taking the exams, but for one exception – you might be sitting home, but must have all needed devices plugged in order to let one of our proctors supervise you. 

What are my career options?

Short answer: decide on a career path and focus on achieving it. 

Long answer: there are no absolute answers to this question. The answers always depend on how a person is serious about planning the future and professional work path. From our side we make effort to help our students and prospect graduates to discover wide range of possibilities by involving them to the international exchange programmes, internships and teaching assistant activity, inviting them to the job fair or career centre to meet our partner companies, which might become their employers in the future. 

Bonus question: Is it cold in Saint Petersburg?

Short answer: only if you're wearing clothes that don't match the weather.

Long answer: if you imagine snowdrifts height of 3-floor building you are rather far from the truth. The weather in Saint Petersburg is quite changeable. We have all 4 seasons: winter, spring, summer and autumn. In the winter you might face some frosts (up to −20°C). Spring is much better, but don’t be surprised of having one snowy day in the mid of April. Summer…Summer runs too fast as everywhere and it’s superb with its marvellous white nights in May and June! Finally, we love autumn for the power to dye the nature in amber and scarlet tints as if the landscape becomes a living canvas.