International olympiad · Fully remote · For a Master's
SPbU International — to a Master's
The SPbU International Olympiad — Bachelor's to Master's
Saint Petersburg State University (SPbU)
If you're a foreign Bachelor's student who wants a Master's at Saint Petersburg University on a budget-funded place, this is your route. An olympiad built specifically for foreign nationals, fully remote, assessed on your achievements portfolio and a language test — not a subject exam.
The new season usually opens mid-November — sign up with us and we'll alert you as soon as it's confirmed.
🗓️ The exact date isn't set yet
Registration expected: 12 نوفمبر — according to the official source. We'll alert you the moment it's confirmed.
Deadline expected: 6 فبراير — according to the official source. We'll alert you the moment it's confirmed.
Can you apply? Read this first
🎓 Who exactly? The regulation says: foreign students on Bachelor's programmes — and the stated aim is “to identify talented ones among them and support their admission to Saint Petersburg University in 2026 for study on Master's programmes”. 🏛️ And the legal basis is named explicitly: Russian Government Decree No. 2150 of 18/12/2020 on the quota for educating foreign nationals, and Ministry of Science Order No. 1378 of 3/11/2020. So this is an official quota route, not a university offer. 🔴 And this is not “the SPbU school students' olympiad”: the university runs another olympiad under an almost identical name at olympiada.spbu.ru — that's the local route, and its benefit is conditional on your ЕГЭ (Russian state exam) result, its final is in person and the costs are on the participant. If you're a foreign national, your route is the one on this page.
3subjects maximumyou may enter three
2tests per subjectportfolio + language
remoteall the tests
budget-fundedwithin the government quota
The opportunity
What is this olympiad?
“Saint Petersburg University's Open International Olympiad for Foreign Students” — the university runs it to select foreign nationals for federal budget places within the Russian government quota.
🔀 And there are three versions depending on your stage: one for school students (leading to a Bachelor's), this one for Bachelor's students (leading to a Master's), and a third for Specialist and Master's students (leading to a PhD). Pick the right version — each has its own regulation and documents.
The format is different from ordinary olympiads: there is no subject exam. Each subject has two tests — a document competition (portfolio) assessing your academic and scientific achievements, and an oral-written test proving your Russian. Your file is what speaks.
The potential prize
What could you reach?
🏛️ An official recommendation to the ministry for a Master's place at SPbU on the federal budget within the government quota — the regulation's own text (clause 4.2). This is the approved route into the quota via the university itself.
🎯 The available programmes are tied to your subject — and the mapping table is published officially no later than 5 February (clause 4.3).
💻 All the tests are remote — no travel and no transport costs to take part.
🎓 Saint Petersburg University — one of the two oldest universities in Russia.
🎯 How it actually works: the university's admissions committee sends your name to the ministry as a recommendation for a place within the quota, and the ministry is what issues the final study referral. So winning opens the door and you hold official backing from the university — but it doesn't secure you the place. And our rule stands: tuition coverage ≠ living coverage, so prepare your budget.
The path
The timetable and the steps
1
Register in your personal account and choose your subjects
On the university's site. You submit an application addressed to the rector in one or more subjects — a maximum of 3, then print it, sign it and upload it.
2
🔴 Check the subject-to-programme mapping table — published 5 February
The regulation (clause 4.3) says the correspondence between study programmes and olympiad subjects is set by the admissions committee and published on abiturient.spbu.ru no later than 5 February. So your subject determines which programmes you can enter — read the table before you choose.
3
Upload your documents — before 6 February
Proof of identity + its notarised Russian translation, your education document and its annexes + their translation, consent to data processing, and a copy of your study visa if you have one. 🟢 And if you haven't graduated yet: the regulation (clause 2.3.4) lets you submit a certificate from your university with your grades for all completed study periods instead of the diploma — you upload the diploma later.
4
The achievements portfolio
Each subject includes a document competition whose purpose is “to reveal the participants' academic and/or scientific achievements” — meaning your research, publications and participations are what get assessed. It must be uploaded before 6 February.
5
The language test — oral-written, remote
To prove Russian at ТРКИ-II (B2) level for subjects held in Russian. For subjects held in a language other than Russian: ТЭУ (A1) is enough, plus a written test in that language. All tests are remote — official text.
6
Results — by 13 March
The participant lists, with the winners' list marked out, are published on the admissions committee's site no later than 13 March (clause 4.4). And the regulation says the “winner or not” decision is taken for each participant individually — there is no relative ranking between you (clause 4.1).
7
🔴 If you win: one week only
Before 20 March you must email [email protected] confirming you wish to study (or declining) — using a form attached to the regulation (clause 4.5.1) — and submit your admission application and upload the full document file: the form in block capitals with a colour photo · a medical certificate of no health contraindications and freedom from all types of hepatitis and tuberculosis · an HIV-free certificate · a 3×4 photo.
🔴 All documents must be in Russian or with a notarised Russian translation, or from a body authorised under the law and international agreements. A notarised translation takes time and money — start it now, not after you win.
Tracks
The subjects
The list of olympiad subjects and the table mapping them to Master's programmes are published on the international admissions page — check it before you choose:
A maximum of 3 subjectsPer subject: portfolio + languageRussian-language subjects require B2Subjects in another language require A1 + a test in that language
Eligibility
Who can take part?
🌍
Foreign nationals and stateless persons
The olympiad is built for them — you are the intended audience.
🎓
A student on a Bachelor's programme
This is the version that leads to Master's programmes. If you're a Specialist or Master's student, your version is the one leading to a PhD.
🗣️
Russian: ТРКИ-II (B2) for Russian-language subjects
And for subjects held in a language other than Russian: A1 is enough, plus a written test in that subject's language. Check the subject list before you rule yourself out.
📄
You don't have to have finished your Bachelor's
The regulation (2.3.4) allows a certificate from your university with your grades for all completed study periods instead of the diploma — you upload the diploma later.
Common questions
Tap any question to open the answer ▾
💬How many subjects can I enter?▾
A maximum of 3 subjects — official text. And choose wisely: your subject determines which Master's programmes you can enter, and the mapping table is published on abiturient.spbu.ru no later than 5 February.
💬Are the tests in person or online?▾
All of them are remote. The official text on the olympiad's site: «все олимпиадные испытания проводятся дистанционно».
💬What level of Russian is required?▾
ТРКИ-II (B2) for subjects held in Russian. As for subjects in a language other than Russian, ТЭУ (A1) — the elementary level — is enough, together with a written test in that subject's own language. So your language level determines which subjects are open to you; it doesn't shut you out of the olympiad altogether.
💬🔴 I found two websites — which one is mine?▾
These are two different olympiads with similar names.int-olimpiada.spbu.ru — “the Open International Olympiad for Foreign Students”. This is yours: remote, and what it wins you is a quota place.
olympiada.spbu.ru — “the school students' olympiad at SPbU”. The local route: its benefit is conditional on your ЕГЭ result, its final is in person, and its regulation says “costs are borne by participants themselves”.
💬Does winning mean I've been admitted?▾
Winning opens the door — and the ministry is what issues the final decision. The regulation (4.2) says the university's admissions committee gives winners an official recommendation to study on budget places within the quota — meaning the university itself nominates you to the ministry, and that is the strongest backing you can enter the quota with. After that the ministry issues the final study referral.
🟢 And something in your favour: the “winner or not” decision is taken for each participant individually (clause 4.1) — the regulation announces no closed number of winners, so you are not competing for a pre-set number of slots.
This opportunity is competitive — and winning gives you an official recommendation from the university's admissions committee to the ministry (рекомендация) for a place within the government quota, and the final decision is issued by the Ministry of Science. So the recommendation is the door — but it is not the place itself. Final reference: int-olimpiada.spbu.ru and the international admissions page at abiturient.spbu.ru — the dates change every season, so open them and check before any step.
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