HSE - St. Petersburg Political Science Programmes Receive International Accreditation

Central Evaluation and Accreditation Agency (ZEvA) recognized undergraduate programme 'Political Science and World Politics' and master's programme 'Comparative Politics of Eurasia' as meeting international quality standards of education. Both programs are accredited for six years without additional conditions.

© HSE University - Saint Petersburg

An expert commission, which includes representatives of leading European universities, noticed that HSE St. Petersburg programmes in political science 'set new trends through internationalization, training in modern research methods, and combination of political science and international relations'.

In particular, innovative decision to combine political science and international relations in the undergraduate programme, well-designed study process aiming to achieve high educational results, and presence of regional tracks, received a positive assessment of the experts. We remind that starting next academic year, students of the programme 'Political Science and World Politics' will have the opportunity to choose one of three regional tracks: the European countries, the BRICS states, or post-Soviet countries.

Master's programme 'Comparative Politics of Eurasia' was also highly evaluated by the Agency. The experts noted the balanced up-to-date curriculum, the variety of elective courses, and the emphasis on developing skills of advanced research methods. According to the commission, the combination of disciplines in comparative politics and international relations makes it possible to 'better prepare students for the global academic and non-academic labour market' requirements.

Dr Anna Dekalchuk, the Academic Supervisor of the programme 'Political Science and World Politics', points out that international accreditation, along with the university reputation and position in international rankings, helps applicants navigate the market of educational services. 'There is the information asymmetry in relations between the university and its applicants, who can assess the quality of education only in the course of their studies. International accreditation by independent accreditation agency is a tool to reduce this asymmetry. 

It is a message to the outside that the quality education in our programmes meets the highest international standards.

I hope accreditation by ZEvA will serve as an additional message not only for Russian applicants but also for applicants from other counties. Taking into consideration that both programmes are oriented in the global market of education, this is particularly important'. Dr Dekalchuk also emphasizes that obtaining international accreditation strengthens relations with employers and the university's partners: 'When employers receive these additional messages about the high independent assessment of education quality, our graduates become more competitive on the global labour market'.

Central Evaluation and Accreditation Agency (ZEvA) is an international agency with a headquarter in Hanover, Germany. ZEvA's main activity is evaluation and accreditation in teaching and learning, governance and management in higher education. ZEvA is one of the founders of ENQA (European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education), which forms approaches to ensuring the quality of higher education. The ZEvA assessment is based on the ESG (The Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area). The agency has been working on the educational market since 1995.

Undergraduate programme 'Political Science and World Politics' is delivered in the English language. In 2020, the programme provides 40 state-funded places and 70 fee-paying places for Russian applicants, and 17 fee-paying places for foreign citizens. Information about admission can be found in the section for undergraduate applicants.

Master's programme 'Comparative Politics of Eurasia' is delivered in the English language. In 2020, the programme provides 15 state-funded places and 5 fee-paying places for Russian applicants, and 9 fee-paying places for foreign citizens. Information about admission can be found in the section for graduate applicants.