The "Vysshaya Proba" olympiad at HSE University
An academic olympiad for school students across 26 subject profiles, run by HSE University. The official page for foreign participants states that school students living outside Russia who know Russian may take part. Registration closes on 21 September 2026 at 14:00 Moscow time.
Registration is open right now — it opened on 20 August 2026. And the time of day is part of the deadline, not a detail: the official calendar writes it as "14:00 мск". If your country is an hour or two behind Moscow, your last day ends earlier than you would assume. Register days ahead, not hours.
19 days left until it closes21 September 2026🗣️ And the language condition is not cosmetic: the olympiad is held in Russian. This is not an English-language international olympiad. If your Russian is not yet strong, that is the first thing to work on — before anything else.
⚠️ Do not confuse it with the HSE International Youth Olympiad: the university also runs the HSE International Youth Olympiad at olymp.hse.ru — a separate entity with its own rules, calendar and registration portal. "Vysshaya Proba" lives only at olymp.hse.ru/mmo.
🔴 And do not confuse the benefit with the Russian Government Scholarship: what the official page describes is a chance of admission to HSE on state-funded (budget) places without entrance exams — not the Russian Government Scholarship and not the quota. Two different routes with different conditions.
What is "Vysshaya Proba"?
"Vysshaya Proba" is an academic olympiad for school students run by HSE University — the Higher School of Economics. It covers 26 subject profiles, from mathematics, chemistry, biology and computer science through to law, economics, philosophy and oriental languages.
Participation is not limited to students inside Russia: the official rules also cover those studying school-level programmes abroad, and there is a dedicated official page setting out the conditions for foreign participants.
The key point is that it is more than a certificate: according to the page for foreign participants, foreign winners and prize-winners "имеют шанс" — they have a chance — of admission to HSE on state-funded places without entrance exams. Read the benefit section below in full, and its conditions in particular.
What does winning actually give you?
① Winning does not by itself admit you. The official wording "имеют шанс" means a chance; final admission remains subject to the bachelor's programme and HSE's admission requirements. Selection is competitive and not guaranteed.
② This is not the Russian Government Scholarship or the quota. A place funded from the university's budget is an entirely separate route — do not read the quota's conditions and apply them here, or the other way round.
③ And the final stage is held in person in Russia. So the real cost is not zero even when participation itself is free: travel, accommodation and a visa. Budget for that now, not in February.
How to register
Registration goes through the olympiad's personal account, and these steps are taken from the official registration instructions:
📬 And watch your inbox after submitting. HSE registration is not confirmed by a "submitted" screen — it is confirmed by an email carrying a registration number. If that email does not arrive, treat yourself as not registered and act before the door closes.
🔁 If you took part in previous years, you may be able to reuse your old credentials or request a new password, per HSE's instructions.
Stages of the olympiad
From 20 August 2026 until 21 September 2026 at 14:00 Moscow time.
25 September 2026 to 11 October 2026. Remote testing, taken from your own country.
13 November 2026 to 22 November 2026. Some profiles have more than one slot inside the official calendar.
5 February 2027 to 15 February 2027, in various cities across Russia. The full list of cities is published only after the first stage ends.
Subject profiles (26 in total)
The profiles exactly as announced in the official olympiad calendar:
Who can apply?
The olympiad is aimed at students in school-level education, and the HSE study track attached to it is the bachelor's degree.
The official page for foreign participants states that school students residing in foreign countries may take part — this is published policy, not an exception.
The same sentence says «and knowing Russian». The olympiad is held in Russian, so this is a practical requirement, not a preference.
A profile appearing on the list does not mean it is open to every school year — check the official calendar for the profile you care about before choosing.
The official site allows entering several profiles where the calendar permits, and you can amend your list of choices until registration closes.
Tap any question to open the answer ▾
💬I am not in Russia — can I take part?
But note the second half of that sentence: knowing Russian is part of the condition, not an optional extra.
💬Is the olympiad in English or in Russian?
"Vysshaya Proba" is sometimes described as an English-language international olympiad — that is wrong. If your Russian is not yet good enough for an academic exam, the language is the priority right now, not the registration form.
💬Is this the same as the HSE International Youth Olympiad?
• The HSE International Youth Olympiad is at olymp.hse.ru — it has its own page here.
• "Vysshaya Proba" — the subject of this page — is at olymp.hse.ru/mmo, with a different calendar, different rules and a different registration portal.
Mixing them up sends you to the wrong portal and the wrong deadline.
💬Is the final online, like the qualifier?
The qualifying stage is online in two rounds, but the final stage is held in person in various cities across Russia, from 5 February 2027 to 15 February 2027.
The list of cities is not published until the first stage has ended — so do not book travel or start a visa on the basis of a guessed city.
💬Can I enter more than one subject?
But do not assume every profile is open to every school year — eligibility varies by profile and year, so check the official calendar for each one.
💬When am I actually registered?
A "your application has been sent" screen is not proof of registration under HSE's instructions. Watch your inbox (and your spam folder), and if nothing has arrived before 21 September 2026, act immediately.
⚠️ And two profiles register separately: "Data Analysis" and "Industrial Programming".
💬If I win, is my admission to HSE guaranteed?
That chance is conditional on the olympiad profile matching the bachelor's programme, on meeting the admission requirements, and on creating a foreign applicant account and submitting the documents.
And this is not the Russian Government Scholarship or the quota — it is a separate route with separate conditions.
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Register early, and start strengthening your Russian now
Registration closes on 21 September 2026 at 14:00 Moscow time, and the qualifier is online so you can sit it from your own country. Sign up with us and we will alert you the moment the final-stage cities are announced.