The field of global history within the new MA will be attractive for graduates of the Russian BA programmes who are interested in widening the framework of their historical education as it adds comparative perspectives and cuts across the division into domestic and universal history of existing history programs in Russia. At the same time, the program will highlight a regional focus that will attract international students who would like to take advantage of the unique opportunities to work with leading experts in the regions of northern Eurasia (the history of Russia and the USSR, including related topics in the history of Eastern Europe, Northern Europe, the Caucasus, Siberia), the opportunity to work in archives and other research collections of St. Petersburg. The global history framework will also be interesting for those international students who would like to write master's theses under the guidance of leading researchers in the sub-fields of historical science (political history, environmental and technological history, economic history, history of law, history of science) without reference to the Russian archives.

Another competitive advantage of the program should be its bilingualism. English is the language of international academic communication, including history. Teaching in English will serve as the task of enrolling graduate students in international graduate schools, including in the international graduate program Global history of empires.

At the same time, project work, practices and writing a master's thesis will also be available in Russian. This will be attractive for some Russian students, but it can also be demanded among those foreign students who want to complement their experience in Russia with academic Russian. The international partners of the Department of History have repeatedly stressed that they would like to send their MA students to St. Petersburg to specialise in Russian history, but there is no corresponding MA program in HSE St. Petersburg. In addition to the project work and the possibility of writing a master's thesis in Russian, students will be offered elective courses in Russian (similar to how English courses are offered in Russian-language programs), for example, the course of Evgenii Anisimov about the global history of St Petersburg.

The program has a clear international focus. The design of the MA in global and regional history enables several double degree tracks. It is likely to quickly create a double-diploma track with the global studies programme at the University of Turin, and in the future with the University of Padova.

The international focus of the program is also supported by the staff of teachers: all the leading members of the HSE History Department participating in the programme have rich academic and teaching experience both in Russia and in leading American and European universities. Many have degrees from universities in Europe and America.

•     Academic track

Some of the programme graduates will continue graduate graduate work at the PhD level. The prerequisites for this in St. Petersburg are:

1) the fact of the outstanding academic careers of the past years of the MA programme in interdisciplinary and applied history whose graduates are admitted to Princeton University, Oxford University, European University Institute, etc.

2) the presence of world-class researchers in the history department;

3) the presence of the Center for Historical Research and the Laboratory of Environmental and Technological history;

4) the participation of St. Petersburg campus in the first HSE international postgraduate history programme “Global History of Empires” together with the University of Turin, the training in which is conducted in English. 

The updated MA should be more aligned with the goals and objectives of the graduate program. Already, MA theses are written at a fairly high level, but students lack competence in the field of global history. This significantly reduces their chances of successfully enrolling in the joint PhD programme in Global History of Empires with the University of Turin. 

•     Practical career track

The practical component of the programme, implemented in the form of project work in the framework of cooperation with the programme partners will be available for students. The ability to acquire skills in several relevant areas will allow graduates to find application not only in the academic field, but also in museums and other institutions. 

As a result of mastering the educational program, a graduate of the Higher School of Economics will form universal, general professional (as defined in sections of the OS in the areas of training) and professional competencies.

The curriculum is focused on mastering the skills necessary for conducting academic research and in demand on the intellectual labour market today.

Program volume: 120 ECTS, 2 years (4 semesters, 8 modules, summer practice and independent student projects)

This degree programme of HSE University is adapted for students with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities. Special assistive technology and teaching aids are used for collective and individual learning of students with SEN and disabilities. The specific adaptive features of the programme are listed in each subject's full syllabus and are available to students through the online Learning Management System.

All documents of the degree programme are stored electronically on this website. Curricula, calendar plans, and syllabi are developed and approved electronically in corporate information systems. Their current versions are automatically published on the website of the degree programme. Up-to-date teaching and learning guides, assessment tools, and other relevant documents are stored on the website of the degree programme in accordance with the local regulatory acts of HSE University.

I hereby confirm that the degree programme documents posted on this website are fully up-to-date.

Vice Rector Sergey Yu. Roshchin

Summary of Degree Programme 'Global and Regional History'