International Postgraduate Students in Russia: Statistics and Trends

. In the current context of internationalization of higher education and increasing academic mobility, the analysis of training of international postgraduate students in Russian scientific and educational centres is of particular relevance. However, modern academic discourse mainly focuses on student migration, resulting in a lack of data regarding the level and nature of internationalization of postgraduate studies in Russia. The aim of this study is to systematically analyze statistical data on the dynamics of foreign postgraduate student population in Russia over the last decade. Methodologically, this study is based on the data from the Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) for the period from 2014 to 2024 (form No. 1-NK) and information on dissertation defence by foreign citizens from the Budget Monitoring Centre “Highly qualified scientific personnel”. We collected and analyzed data on the dynamics of the number and effectiveness of training for international postgraduate students, as well as their distribution by field of study and country of origin. Our findings show that the number of international postgraduate students has grown faster than the overall number of international students. Over the last ten years, the proportion of foreign citizens among postgraduate degree recipients has quadrupled, reaching 12%. Besides, certain structural problems regarding the export of postgraduate education have been identified. First, there is a clear imbalance in the number of postgraduate students, with a disproportionately high percentage pursuing their studies in social sciences and humanities. These fields are currently characterized by lower performance indicators in Russia. Second, there is a significant source country concentration, with more than 40% of international postgraduate students being Chinese citizens. Their academic preferences, such as pedagogy, cultural studies, economics, and philology, substantially affect the overall performance indicators of international postgraduate students in Russia. The results of the study can be used by government agencies and the academic community to develop targeted measures to enhance the efficiency of postgraduate education exports and attract talented foreign citizens to postgraduate programmes in the fields of science and technology that are strategically important for Russia.