Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) was founded in 1755 by Mikhail Lomonosov, a Russian polymath, scientist and writer, from whom the institution takes its name. The university was inaugurated by Elizabeth Petrovna, Empress of Russia, on January 25 of that year, a date is still celebrated in Russia as Students’ Day.
Today, MSU is a coeducational public research university that caters for 38,000 students. The majority of these are full-time, with approximately 3,500 students studying part-time and 4,000 international students. Around 10,000 academic members of staff work at the university, the vast majority of which are full-time.
There are 39 faculties at MSU and undergraduates can choose from 128 programmes. Postgraduates may choose to specialise in 18 branches of science and humanities within 168 different areas. Over 140 programmes are available through open distance learning.
With 1,000 buildings and structures, including eight dormitories, the MSU campus covers over one million square metres. Its library system is one of the largest in the country containing nine million books.
MSU’s vast academic hub also comprises 15 research institutes, four museums, 380 departments, a science park, botanical gardens, a publishing house, a recreational centre and a boarding house for talented children.
The university also comprises six local branches within Russia and operates five satellite campuses in former Soviet republics.
As well as collaborations within the Eurasion Association of Universities, MSU has partnerships with around 60 higher education institutes around the world.
Among the university’s notable alumni are 11 Nobel Laureates and seven Fields Medal winners. The writers Anton Chekhov and Ivan Turgenev attended MSU, as did former Soviet statesman Mikhail Gorbachev.
