A 2nd Call to Reform Russian Universities

Russian universities need change of tack

Author:

Renad Zhdanov

Exert:

Of the factors contributing to Russia's poor scientific performance (see, for example, A. Gorobets Nature 503, 39; 2013), the plight of the country's university professors stands out.

These professors are poorly paid; most are forced to supplement their earnings with other employment. Their typical annual teaching load of up to 1,000 hours is three to five times higher than that in universities elsewhere, leaving them little time for research or writing up their work. On top of this, professors are now under pressure from Russia's Ministry of Education and Science to publish two or three papers a year in international journals to help their universities to reach the top 200 in global rankings.