From Europe and America to Africa and Australia: International Admissions 2020 Attract Applicants from around the World
Every October, HSE University sums up the results of that year’s international student admissions campaign. This year, due to the pandemic, the University quickly reorganized admissions procedures and began holding all events and consultations remotely. In total, 9,324 students from 156 countries applied to undergraduate and graduate programmes at HSE University. For the 2020/2021 year, HSE welcomed 2,214 students from all over the world to its campuses. This is an 11% increase in international enrollments from last year.
The University’s international student admissions campaign for 2020 not only saw an increase in applicants from all over the world, but an increase in the number of applications they submitted to different programmes. Despite all the fears and challenges that have accompanied the pandemic, HSE undergraduate and graduate programmes collectively received more than 9,000 applications from 156 countries.
Of the 2,214 foreign citizens admitted this year as first-year students, 1,636 enrolled at the Moscow campus, and the numbers of those accepted to state-funded places and those accepted to fee-paying places were nearly equal. The largest share of international students that have enrolled at HSE University in Moscow are from the CIS countries, Asia, and Eastern Europe. This year’s new enrollees represent almost all regions of the world: from the Middle East and North Africa to Latin and North America, there are even students from Australia and Oceania.
Ivan Prostakov, HSE University Vice Rector
HSE is not just a full-fledged multidisciplinary university, but also an international one, where every 10th student is from outside of Russia. We embrace innovations and were able to reorganize the admissions and learning processes in a fairly short time. We strive to create a favorable environment for our international students and make their studies at the University both interesting and memorable. Every year we try to provide even more new admissions opportunities to applicants from other countries.
To attract a record number of applicants, the University modified admissions procedures when the admissions campaign was already in progress. When it became clear that there would be no off-site events due to border closures, it was decided to organize admissions events remotely: general and individual consultations were held for international applicants via phone, e-mail, and online meetings, and in-person events were held as webinars and online presentations. University representatives worked to maintain constant contact with applicants. Each applicant was assigned a manager whom they could turn to with admissions and enrollment questions.
Prospective students could ask questions and keep up with HSE admissions updates and news on HSE Admissions Facebook, VK, and Telegram pages, and they could also watch helpful videos on YouTube. Everyone was worried about the same things: passing the bachelor’s programme entrance exams, border closures, and how to successfully enroll and take classes if foreign students are not permitted to enter Russia. To help international applicants keep their peace of mind, additional informational resources were created both on the HSE International Admissions website and its associated social media pages.
For the first time, in early April, mock tests in mathematics, history, English, and Russian were made available for undergraduate programme applicants. Applicants completed a total of 6,000 practice problems and tasks. Graduate programme applicants, on the other hand, could sign up for a preliminary online interview and portfolio assessment directly with their programme of interest. This added resource enabled applicants to upload their portfolios and apply to HSE with confidence.
All bachelor’s programme entrance exams for 2020 were conducted remotely. In total, more than 5,000 exams were taken. Since double degree bachelor’s programmes proved especially popular this year, many applicants took advantage of the option to use international certificates or exam results to fulfill admissions requirements (mainly IELTS, TOEFL, and Advanced Level Mathematics), which in turn exempted them from having to take exams in English and mathematics at HSE.
As in previous years, this year it was possible to apply for full and partial scholarships, and in 2020 the scholarships that fully cover tuition costs were preserved. Bachelor’s programme applicants could receive scholarships based on their results in the Global Scholarship Competition, as well as national and international Olympiads and tests. Graduate programme applicants could receive scholarships in accordance with criteria of their specific programmes. An expanded list of Olympiads, which help gain admission to HSE's undergraduate programmes, is available here.
Alexander Deev, Director of International Admissions, HSE University
We are all, of course, very happy with these results. The distance format was difficult for both applicants and HSE staff, and we would like to thank the applicants from the bottom of our hearts for their trust. We all did a good job! And beginning on November 1, 2020, we are starting the admissions campaign for 2021/22, which, as always, will include many interesting events for international applicants, such as master classes, quizzes, business games, and more. Don't miss your chance to become part of the big HSE family!
Most Popular Programmes among International Applicants (HSE Moscow)
Top 4 undergraduate programmes:
Top 5 graduate programmes:
Strategic Corporate Finance (English-taught)
Data Science (English-taught)
Russian Studies (English-taught)
International Relations: European and Asian Studies (languages of instruction: Englisn and Russian)
Business Development Strategies: Management and Consulting (languages of instruction: English and Russian)
This year’s admissions campaign has shown that providing assistance to applicants in choosing a professional trajectory at the pre-application stage, maintaining constant contact with applicants throughout the admissions process, and providing up-to-date information about pandemic-related policies are essential. HSE always welcomes applicants from all over the world and offers not only different levels of study, but also different formats in terms of language (English and Russian) and mode (online and offline).
To learn more about HSE University, its admission process, or life in Moscow, please visit International Admissions website, or contact the Education & Training Advisory Centre at: inter@hse.ru, or via WhatsApp at: +7 (916) 311 8521.
You can also sign up for online zoom consultations to get more information on international admissions.