August 12, 2026

War Opens University Doors


War Opens University Doors
Members of the Wagner group. BelTA Agency, Wikimedia Commons

The independent outlet Vazhnye Istory reports that more than 4,300 people were admitted to 18 of Russia’s top universities in 2026 under quotas for participants of Russia’s War on Ukraine and their children — nearly 50% more than last year. For the first time, war participants and their children filled more than the prescribed 10% of state-funded seats in some programs.

Preferential university admissions for children of participants in Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine were introduced in 2022. In 2023, authorities created a separate quota covering not only children but also people who have fought in Ukraine since 2014, other security personnel, and Russians who worked in occupied territories. At least 10% of state-funded seats in every university program must be reserved under the quota.

According to Vazhnye Istory, most quota students admitted to leading universities would not have qualified through the general competition. At a medical university in Voronezh, 93% of students admitted through the separate quota based on Unified State Exam, or EGE, scores would otherwise have fallen short. In pediatrics, for example, quota applicants were admitted with scores ranging from 195 to 202, compared with a general-admission cutoff of 262.

At the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, 87% of quota recipients would not have been admitted without the preference. At the Higher School of Economics in Moscow, the figure was 80%.

The quota has been used for five admission cycles, and the number of recipients has risen each year. About 9,000 people entered Russian universities through it in 2023, more than 15,000 in 2024 (3.5% of all students admitted to state-funded places), and 28,500 in 2025 (6.5%).

Nationwide figures for 2026 are not yet available, but data from leading universities suggest growth has slowed. Admissions under the quota rose 58% in 2025 from the previous year and 47% in 2026.

At some universities, quota admissions exceeded 10% in 2026. Under new rules, unused seats reserved for other preferential categories can now be transferred to war participants and their relatives. Previously, those seats returned to the general admissions pool.

Universities have also begun offering tuition-free study for veterans and their families. financed by the institutions themselves, outside the quota.

Since 2023, Moscow's Higher School of Economics has offered university-funded places to service members and their children, spouses, siblings, and adoptive parents. Applicants need only meet the university’s minimum EGE score; those who do not can take internal exams. They may also choose programs with no state-funded seats because the university covers tuition.

This year, the university said it would provide free bachelor’s and master’s education to people who serve for a year in BARS reserve units or Russia’s unmanned systems forces. The program targets applicants who fell a few points short of a state-funded place: They sign a contract, complete a preparatory program and, after service, receive a "guaranteed place" funded by the university.

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