Corruption in Higher Education

Abstract

The research is aimed at studying the opinion of university students on corruption in higher education. Researchers give ambiguous assessments of the nature of corruption in higher education, therefore, the purpose of the work is to determine the nature of corruption, the causes of its reproduction, as well as factors that, according to students, can reduce its level based on the study of students’ opinions on corruption in higher education. The methodological basis of the research was the works of leading foreign and Russian scientists. The study was conducted using general scientific methods, such as system analysis, questionnaires, generalization and systematization, and comparisons. The results of student survey (N=400) and 12 individual semi-structured interviews of students of the Ural State University of Economics and St. Petersburg State University collected in 2021 constitute an empirical base. It was found that the majority of university students have a superficial understanding of the essence of corruption and tend to tolerate it. The majority of students did not participate in corruption relations, but a third of respondents consider it as a means suitable for solving private problems. According to the students, the factors that have the greatest impact on the reproduction of corruption relations at university are the low level of remuneration of teachers, the low moral level of teachers and staff, as well as the lack of proper administrative control. The greatest impact on reducing corruption in higher education, in the opinion of the students, are the factors of increasing responsibility for corruption offenses, raising teachers’ salaries and strengthening administrative control at the university.