In 3 years the number of foreign students in Russia has grown by 26,000

The total number of foreign students receiving higher education in Russia has grown over the past 3 years by more than 26,000. According to the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Russia, in 2019 in Russian universities studied 298,000 foreign students, in 2020 there were 315,000, and in 2021 324,000 of them.

Students come to the Russian Federation from Kazakhstan (61 thousand), Uzbekistan (48.7 thousand), China (32.6 thousand), Turkmenistan (30.6 thousand), Tajikistan (23.1 thousand), India (16.7 thousand), Egypt (12.4 thousand), Belarus (10.2 thousand), Ukraine (9.1 thousand), and Kyrgyzstan (8.6 thousand).

The most popular specialization among foreign students is medicine. Applicants from all of these countries try to enter medical faculties. In addition to medical specialties, such areas as economics and management are in demand among Kazakh and Uzbek students. The same specialties are chosen by citizens of China, besides, Chinese students like to enter faculties of linguistics.

Turkmen students tend to choose pedagogics and economics. Applicants from Tajikistan often prefer dentistry or economics. Citizens of India come to Russia to get psychological and pedagogical education or choose faculties of mathematics. Students from Egypt are attracted by dentistry and oil and gas business, and students from the Republic of Belarus and Ukraine often choose management, economics and law. The most attractive areas for students from Kyrgyzstan are economics and construction.