Saint-Petersburg State University

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For more than 290 years, St Petersburg State University has been committed to advancing science and training highly qualified professionals. The University dates back to 1724 when Peter the Great founded the Academy of Sciences and Arts and the first Academic University and the university preparatory school in Russia.
We take special pride in the constellation of our outstanding staff and alumni. SPbU has given the world many famous people in science, politics, business, sports, literature, and art. The University has Nobel Prize winners among its staff and alumni: physiologist Ivan Pavlov, biologist Ilya Mechnikov, physical chemist Nikolay Semyonov, physicist Lev Landau Aleksandr Prokhorov, mathematician, and economist Leonid Kantorovich. SPbU is also an alma mater to outstanding researchers, scholars, academics, political and social leaders: Dmitry Mendeleev, Vladimir Vernadsky, and Dmitry Likhachev, to name but a few. The world owes our University's most prominent cultural leaders, writers, and artists: Ivan Turgenev, Pavel Brullov, Alexander Blok, Alexandre Benois, Sergei Diaghilev, and Igor Stravinsky. Among the University alumni, we are also proud to mention leaders of the Russian Government: Boris Stürmer, Alexander Kerensky, Vladimir Lenin, Presidents of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev.
Today, by bringing together traditions and innovations, St Petersburg University sets the pace for developing science, education, and culture in Russia and across the world. We are consistently ranked highly in international university rankings (Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings, Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings, Academic Ranking of World Universities) and subject rankings, which proves the success of our development strategy. We have leading universities and major corporations as our academic and business partners.
The University is fully equipped to provide a diverse range of opportunities for education, research, and creativity: the richest Research Library named after Maksim Gorky, a comprehensive digital collection of scholarly editions, a state-of-the-art Research Park, laboratories headed by leading scientists, museums, a publishing house, sports clubs, a University choir, orchestras, drama and dance studios, and many more.
In 2009, the Federal Law granted St Petersburg State University and Moscow State University the special status of 'unique scientific and educational complexes …. instrumental in the development of Russian society.' SPbU was granted the privilege to set its educational standards, award its diplomas and state-recognized academic degrees of Candidate of Sciences and Doctor of Sciences.
SPbU runs an open competition to finance research in priority branches of science and create new research laboratories. We are actively developing postdoctoral programs and provide corporate housing for our academic staff.
St Petersburg University has introduced Virtual Excursion. This is a project that helps you discover the University online.
You can see the main corridor at the Twelve Collegia that is the longest University corridor in the world, Petrovskii Hall that has preserved its original interior of the 18th century, Park of the Modern Sculpture, and St Peter and Paul's Church, to name but a few.
St Petersburg is famous the world over for its University. St Petersburg University is not a campus university, so it is not all located on one site. It is made up of many different buildings located around Vasilievskii Island, Central district, Admiralty district, and Petergof. Many of them are unique architectural monuments, say, Mikhailovskaia Dacha and Bobrinski's Palace, that is harmonious in combining history and modernity.
The Twelve Collegia, as the main building of the University, demonstrated a notable example of Peter the Great's architectural period and was built by Domenico Trezzini and А. F. Shchedrin in the 18th century. Initially, it was a place for the Russian government: Senate, Synod, and collegia. In 1838, it was commissioned by the University. Since it has been housing offices, Gorky Research Library, resource centers, and laboratories of the Research Park, it is also a place where we hold important events: ceremonies, concerts, conferences, and meetings with famous people and those who come to visit the University.

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