International student recruitment and mobility in Russia

Abstract

Historically, Russia has been one of the key players on the global education market and remains the seventh largest study destination for international students. Russian higher education is attractive for students from post-Soviet countries owing to job market opportunities and Russian as a language of instruction, and to students from other countries, owing to the quality of its higher education and low tuition fees. However, in conditions of changing dynamics in international student recruitment and changing demand from the national economy, Russia is now reconsidering its rationales, products, and instruments for international student mobility. Growing competition is not the only challenge. The key challenge for Russian international policy is developing a more strategic set of instruments to increase the quality of experiences for international students and turning international mobility into feasible qualitative outcomes both for the national economy and for university development. This relates to overcoming the language barrier and increasing the level of internationalization of universities, bringing new actors, such as business, to this sector, and other important factors.