Anatomy of the Soviet University

Abstract

Abstract The Soviet university provided free and comprehensive education with a focus on the needs of industry and Party interests. It practised limited institutional autonomy and academic freedom and was oriented towards developing communist morality in students and staff. Universities followed army-like principles of organisation characterised by uniformity, top-down administration, and centralised management. The Soviet university was embedded in a large higher education system with 32 per cent enrolment rates in the late 1980s, which was slightly higher than the EU average. There were policies in place to ensure equal access to higher education for workers and peasants. At the same time, widespread practices of reciprocity and corruption prevailed at all institutions. There existed a high level of determinism in occupational pathways with limited consideration for mobility and career development. It was expected that students would obey every order of the state, including volunteering at collective farms or industries, as and when required in the interests of the state. Soviet universities hosted foreign students who were selected centrally based on their social origin and ideological background. Foreign students were recruited actively as part of an international cultural diplomacy goal of developing pro-Soviet elites globally. This chapter offers an overview of the historical development of the Soviet university model, with a focus on the four key domains in the late Soviet period: restricted institutional autonomy and limited academic freedom, organisational separation of education and research, state-led expansion of access to universities, and international cultural diplomacy.