Overview
Established in 1943, MGIMO University (Moscow State Institute of International Relations) is among the premier social science universities in Russia, Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and BRICS countries. In 1993, MGIMO pioneered Russia’s first ever international dual degree program with the French Sciences Po in Paris – and was the first to launch a full-fledged English-taught Bachelor’s program in International Affairs.
Today, MGIMO offers a vast array of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in 18 areas of study; as well as PhD, MBA, Executive MBA, and pre-university programs. It takes pride in its unique language learning opportunities with 53 foreign languages delivered full-time, which earned it a Guinness World Record for the largest number of languages taught at a university. MGIMO is reputable for the prominent role of teamwork, analytical thinking, critical reasoning, and strategic planning as key aspects of its training methodologies.
MGIMO is also a world-renowned, highly influential public policy think tank.
It has been ranked the 8th best university based policy think tank in the world by the 2020 UN-commissioned Pennsylvania University Survey.
As of 2020, the University offers, for international students, 30 dual/triple degree programs with top universities in Europe, America, and Asia; as well as undergraduate and postgraduate programs in English, French, Italian, German, and Chinese.
The University comprises 13 schools, a Lyceum, a pre-university professional training college and a Business School. MGIMO’s subject-focus ranges from international relations, regional studies, politics, governance, and diplomacy to world economy, law, journalism, foreign trade and management, energy affairs, linguistics, and environmental studies.
The University’s faculty to student ratio stands at 1 to 4, with over 1500 professors and lecturers teaching extensively in smaller groups and tutorial-type seminars. MGIMO’s faculty includes some 20 fellows of the Russian Academy of Sciences (the highest scientific honor Russia can bestow), about 250 full professors, and more than 700 Ph.D. degree-holders. Each year MGIMO invites over 100 international visiting professors. Some of them teach regular classes at MGIMO, e.g. a famous American foreign policy expert from Columbia University Robert Legvold and Professor of Government at Dartmouth College (USA) William Wohlforth. The University habitually welcomes prominent guests – Presidents, Prime Ministers, leaders of international organizations, who come to MGIMO to give open lectures to students.
Today, there are about 8,000 students at MGIMO from 74 countries. International students account for nearly 20 % of the total number of students.
MGIMO spearheaded the establishment of Endowment Funds in Russia, thanks to the generous contributions from its graduates and worldwide known philanthropists. MGIMO Endowment today is the largest university foundation in Russia. It provides support to students’ projects and their overseas internships.
In 2019, the Advisory Board of the MBA Association (AMBA) accredited the MBA and Executive MBA programs of the MGIMO Business School. The same year MGIMO joined the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) -leading international network and most respected professional association in business education and management.
In 2020, MGIMO began to implement a new Development Strategy designed for the University by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) - a global management consulting firm and one of the leaders on global market.
The University, without exception, pays special attention to distance learning and digital technologies. Since 2016, MGIMO has been recording and publishing its distance courses on Coursera. As of today, Coursera features 20 courses and micro-masters by MGIMO Faculty.
Over the years, more than 60,000 students have become MGIMO graduates including more than 12,000 foreign citizens from over 80 countries. The University has a unique Alumni Association which numbers more than 45,000 people and alumni clubs in nearly 40 countries. Among MGIMO graduates, there are three Presidents, 12 Foreign Ministers, eight Prime Ministers, and more than 1200 Ambassadors of Russia and other countries. MGIMO alumni are also well known as leaders of international companies in various sectors. Presidents of France and Greece, Chile and Ecuador, Serbia, and Guinea, Indonesia and Finland, Azerbaijan and Jordan, Prime Ministers of Japan and India, General Secretaries of the United Nations and UNESCO have accepted honorary doctorates from MGIMO and lectured to its students.
Facilities
MGIMO has three campuses – in Moscow, in the Moscow Region, and in Tashkent (Uzbekistan), an educational center for law studies in Geneva, Switzerland, and an educational base for implementing part of its international degrees in IR and Business Administration in Marbella, Spain.
In Moscow, the University has five dormitories, two of which are located on campus. MGIMO Campus in the Moscow Region (Odintsovo) provides accommodation on campus as well, at MGIMO Hotel.
The literary collection at MGIMO Library dates back to the establishment in 1815 of one of MGIMO’s precursors – the Lazarev Institute of Oriental Languages from which the University acquired rich holdings of ancient manuscripts. The Library, today, holds more than 1 million printed books and periodicals in 62 languages, and more than 2,220,000 e-books and e-journals.
MGIMO facilities provide rich opportunities for students to practice sports and keep fit. It has swimming pools, gyms, soccer, volleyball and basketball fields, a tennis court, a boxing ring, and an acrobatic hall. MGIMO also has its own Medical Center, serving both students and faculty.
Student Life
MGIMO provides a wide choice of opportunities for students to engage social life and extracurricular activities. The Cultural Center organises creative classes and events. Each student of the University has a vast cultural panoply to choose from: Ballroom Dance, Modern Dance, the choir (PROXENOS), the orchestra (SYMPHONY), a Literary and Poetry Club, the MGIMO Theatre, and a Painting Club.
The Volunteer Center, established in 2011, provides training for almost 1,000 students who have a chance to practice their skills at large international events. MGIMO volunteers have worked at the FIFA World Cup 2018, the XXII Olympic Games and the XI Paralympic Games.
MGIMO international students organize national clubs inside the International Students Association. The Association acts on the principles of openness, equality, voluntary participation, freedom and independence. Within each club, students have opportunities to talk about their own culture and to integrate, as well as to increase cultural awareness and promote diversity across the student body. They arrange National Gourmet Days and celebrate their national and religious holidays.
Admissions
MGIMO offers a wide range of full-time undergraduate and postgraduate programs as well as short-term and intensive language proficiency programs, including dual/triple degrees. The application procedure varies from program to program, so applicants are welcome to consult the website and Admissions office before applying.
MGIMO International Office (for international applicants at all levels): international@inno.mgimo.ru
Bachelor programs (in Russian): e.zavalko@inno.mgimo.ru
Bachelor programs (in English): bac@inno.mgimo.ru
Master programs (for all applicants) and Dual Degree Master programs: master@my.mgimo.ru
Executive education and MBA (for all applicants): business@inno.mgimo.ru
PhD programs (for all applicants): aspirant@inno.mgimo.ru
Short-term programs (exchange, visiting, research): international@inno.mgimo.ru
Russian language study programs: international@inno.mgimo.ru
International Summer School: msp@odin.mgimo.ru
Careers
MGIMO pays special attention to ensuring successful employment of its graduates. In QS Graduate Employability Ranking MGIMO has collected 100 points out of a possible 100 in the “Graduate Employment Rate” indicator, which reflects the proportion of students working full-time or part-time within twelve months after their graduation. The MGIMO Career Center provides students with prestigious career and internship opportunities through its collaboration with many public and private organizations, federal and local administrative bodies, transnational corporations, mass media, think tanks, and political consulting firms.
The University has signed strategic cooperation agreements with more than 100 companies, both Russian and international, which allow students to start their careers early on through internships and placements.
MGIMO has its own Students and Alumni Office. One of its goals is to help students maximize the use of their professional skills which facilitates career guidance and HR networking.
Every April and every November, MGIMO University hosts Careers Days involving more than 3,000 students and graduates. Before the event, MGIMO publishes a guidebook on the participating companies. In November, the Career Center cooperates with the Association of European Business in Russia to host the International Career Day that involves international companies.
