Education system reforms have enhanced the efficiency of higher education institutions.

The study was published in the journal Vocation, Technology & Education. Anna Panova, an associate professor at the Higher School of Economics (HSE) Faculty of Economic Sciences, and Victoria Slepykh, a staff member at the "University Development" project and educational laboratory of the HSE Institute of Education, analyzed data from 485 state universities in Russia from 2015 to 2023 to assess the effectiveness of the educational reforms taking place in the country. Based on the Monitoring of the Efficiency of Educational Organizations by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Russia, data on the quality of student admissions from the Unified State Exam (USE), and information on the employment and salaries of graduates, the authors examined the dynamics of higher education efficiency and compared universities among themselves.

It was found that educational reforms significantly improved the efficiency of universities and deepened their specialization. Research universities achieved considerable success. This group includes 35 universities—both those with the status of National Research University (HSE, MIPT, MEPhI, and others) and universities with special status (MSU, SPbU). Their publication activity in international databases has increased nearly threefold since 2015—reaching 95 articles in Scopus databases per 100 faculty members. Research universities attract the strongest applicants: their USE scores are, on average, 5-6 points higher than those of applicants from other groups of universities. Additionally, universities in this group attract more external investments than others: their off-budget funding has more than doubled.

“One of the key reasons for this is the Matthew effect—a mechanism by which the successes of universities accumulate and enhance their leadership. Research universities have several advantages that make them attractive to top applicants and ensure the competitiveness of their graduates. They have been able to create research infrastructure and attract talented researchers. This stimulates the admission of the best applicants, who then achieve career success, enhancing the university's reputation, which in turn helps attract new talented applicants. Thus, the success of research universities in various areas is also a self-sustaining process,” comments Anna Panova.

Sectoral universities— the largest group of universities in the country—comprise 354 educational institutions. These include medical, pedagogical, and technical universities (e.g., I.P. Pavlov First St. Petersburg State Medical University, Moscow City Teacher Training University, MAI, and others). Sectoral universities publish only 14 articles in international journals per 100 faculty members, nearly seven times less than National Research Universities. They focus on publications in Russian journals (287 publications per 100 faculty), reflecting limited resources for international activity. Nonetheless, these universities rank second in terms of admission quality, with an average of 70 USE points among applicants.

It is sectoral universities that are better at preparing personnel for the industry: about 10% of students are admitted to targeted places. In other universities, this figure is almost half as low. In certain fields, such as medicine, targeted admissions can reach up to 28% of students. Graduates from sectoral universities find it easier to secure employment, but the highest salaries are earned by graduates of research universities.

Federal and flagship universities (e.g., UrFU, DVFU, VGTU, and others) are generally successful in strengthening regional economies and developing science. Since 2015, their publication activity in international journals has nearly tripled, reaching up to 50 articles per 100 staff members. In terms of admission quality, federal and flagship universities fall slightly short of sectoral ones. Approximately 5% of applicants are admitted to targeted places, and this category of universities has the highest average number of contracts with organizations for training specialists.

The authors noted that the effectiveness of the educational system has significantly increased in recent years, and the reforms are yielding results. The ongoing transformation aims to align the system with market demands.

“Universities are actively engaged in competition with institutions providing additional and vocational education, developing their own programs in these areas. For instance, they are launching online courses and flexible educational programs, enabling them to compete with other educational organizations. The implementation of continuous education programs helps graduates regularly upgrade their qualifications and adapt to changes in the labor market. It can be assumed that the Matthew effect is also evident in this process: universities that launch vocational programs gain competitive advantages, attracting applicants who might otherwise choose alternative forms of education. This strengthens the position of universities in the workforce training system and expands their influence on the educational market,” the authors note.