Dmitry Guzhelya: "Students should become serious and long-term investments for universities"

Positions of Russian universities in the world ranking of the best universities - QS World University Rankings - have significantly improved this year. Adviser of the head of the Federal Agency for CIS Affairs, Compatriots Living Abroad and international humanitarian cooperation (Rossotrudnichestvo) Dmitry Guzhelya discussed the work done by Russian universities in order to improve their positions in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza.

- How did Russian universities manage to improve their positions in this prestigious international rating?

- Many universities worked really hard for the past 5-7 years. The entire internal structure of universities' activities was reconstructed step by step through creation of new departments, invitation of new teachers, revision of approaches to positioning of universities abroad. It was a long systemic work.

- What does improvement in university's rating mean?

- It will affect the growth of number of foreign students who want to study in Russia; universities will have much more foreign partners, who're interested in joint educational, scientific projects with them. I think that it will give more opportunities to our universities.

- Does university's rating affect its branches?

- Of course. The MSU is our leader when it comes to the number of effectively operating branches abroad. The Plekhanov University, for example, has a branch in Mongolia. Every branch gives universities a large number of advantages, which allow to improve their rating. I'm not talking about just branches, but also about joint departments, joint educational programs with foreign universities around the world, which allow to attract a large number of foreign students and a lot of attention to the university.

- What can be done to improve rating even more?

- Improvement requires constant work, development of scientific programs in universities, involment of students in different areas of university's life. We should find talented students abroad, because right now we need every student we can get, and we need the best. Only the most talented students can become serious and long-term investments for university.