‘A Trademark of Russia as an Educational Power:’ Marking a Decade of the Open Doors Olympiad
An instructional seminar of the Open Doors International Olympiad has been held at HSE University. Approximately 100 representatives of 24 Russian universities involved in organising the olympiad took part in the event. The seminar focused on updating the participants’ profile maps, organising the work of methodological teams in a digital environment, and ensuring the quality of the methodological content for the olympiad.
The Open Doors International Olympiad is held by the Global Universities Association as part of the federal project ‘Russia in the World’ of the national project ‘Youth and Children,’ supported by Russia’s Ministry of Science and Higher Education. It is organised by members of the association—24 leading Russian universities, including HSE University.
Olympiad competitions are held online in 14 interdisciplinary majors and four tracks: bachelor’s, master’s, postgraduate, and postdoctoral. Over the nine years of the project, around 700,000 people from more than 200 countries have taken part in these competitions, with over 20,000 winners and awardees. They received free tuition at Russian universities or jobs in Russian research projects (for postdoctoral fellows).
The olympiad’s project office conducts instructional seminars for its organisers twice a year—the previous one was held in October 2025 at Kazan Federal University. During these seminars, methodological teams make decisions regarding the framework of the olympiad, discuss the results of the previous olympiad cycle, and design the parameters of the upcoming cycle.
The seminar at HSE University marked the start of a series of events celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Open Doors Olympiad. It was attended by university research and teaching staff: chairpersons of methodological commissions and juries on olympiad profiles, profile managers, and managers for the promotion of the olympiad. Discussions, exchange of experience between methodological teams with different profiles, and brainstorming sessions to solve problems from the olympiad project office were organised.
At the final plenary session, university representatives discussed the results of their work and agreed on the parameters for the upcoming 2026 olympiad with regard to methodological support. The meeting was attended by vice rectors of the organising universities—Ekaterina Sechenova from the University of Tyumen and Olga Kuzina from MGSU—as well as Svetlana Volodina, Vice Rector of the partner university (Plekhanov Russian University of Economics), and representatives of Russia’s Ministry of Science and Higher Education and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Seminar participants were also given a guided tour of the HSE University campus on Pokrovsky Bulvar.
Irina Karelina
Irina Karelina, Executive Director of the Global Universities Association and Vice President of HSE University, emphasised that the Open Doors International Olympiad team is constantly improving the mechanisms for identifying and selecting the best and most motivated candidates for studying at Russian universities every year. ‘Field-specific programmes reflect the participants’ particular interests in the global market; methodological materials on different profiles are implemented according to common principles and standards,’ she added.
Konstantin Mogilevsky
Konstantin Mogilevsky, Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, deemed the Open Doors International Olympiad ‘a trademark of Russia as a great educational power,’ noting that it continues to develop, its competitive strength is growing, and the range of tasks is being improved. Registration for the 2026 olympiad is scheduled to start on August 20. According to the deputy minister, its participants ‘will deeply appreciate the efforts of the Open Doors team and experience genuine intellectual pleasure.’
See also:
School Students from 34 Countries Take Part in the First International Software Engineering Olympiad PROD
The award ceremony for the winners and runners-up of the first International Software Engineering Olympiad PROD took place in Moscow. It was attended by over 4,000 high school students from all Russian regions and 33 other countries, including Armenia, Brazil, Germany, Georgia, Denmark, Israel, Indonesia, China, Congo, Laos, Liberia, the USA, South Korea, and Japan.
Final of International Yandex–HSE Olympiad in AI and Data Analysis Held at HSE University
Yandex Education and the HSE Faculty of Computer Science have announced the results of the international AIDAO (Artificial Intelligence and Data Analysis Olympiad) competition. Students from 14 countries took part. For the second year in a row, first place went to the team AI Capybara, which developed the most accurate AI model for an autonomous vehicle vision system.
The PROD Software Engineering Olympiad Goes International
The world’s first annual software engineering olympiad for secondary school students—PROD—is expanding internationally. Schoolchildren in grades 8–11 from around the world are invited to participate. For the first time, the competition will be held in both Russian and English. The organisers of the International PROD Olympiad are Central University and T-Technologies Group, the parent company of T-Bank, in partnership with the HSE Faculty of Computer Science.
Registration for Russian Olympiad in Artificial Intelligence 2025 Now Open
Registration for the fifth season of the Russian Olympiad in Artificial Intelligence has opened. This year, the competition has gained international status. The event is open to students in the 8–11 grades both in Russia and abroad. The winners will receive benefits when applying to Russian universities.
HSE Days in Ghana: How the University Attracts Talents and Expands Cooperation with Africa
In March 2025, HSE Days took place in the Ghanaian capital of Accra, the cultural hub of Kumasi, and the Bono East region. Representatives of the university awarded participants of the HSE International Olympiad (HSE INTO 2025) and spoke to local school pupils and university students about educational opportunities, scholarship programmes, and application pathways to HSE University.
Registration Open for Preliminary Round of International Olympiad on Financial Security
The olympiad is organised by Rosfinmonitoring in collaboration with the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, the Ministry of Education of Russia, and universities affiliated with the International Network AML/CFT Institute, including HSE University. This year, experts from HSE have contributed methodologically to the development of tasks for the invitational round. School and university students can participate by registering for the preliminary round by 30 March.
People Who Create Something New: Over 4,000 High School Students Take Part in PROD
The final stage of the first Russian Olympiad on Industrial Development, PROD, hosted by the Central University, T-Bank, and HSE University, has concluded in Moscow. More than 4,000 students from Russia and 22 other countries, including the UK, Germany, France, Canada, China, Belarus, and Peru, took part.
МОМ Junior 2024: The Path to Success and New Discoveries
HSE University has held award ceremonies abroad for the winners of the MOM Junior 2024 International Olympiad for 8th–9th Grade Students. This year, the olympiad took place on-site in five countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova (Transnistria), Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
Results of the HSE International Competition Announced
726 participants received certificates of achievement (winners’ diplomas), and more than 200 have already become HSE students. This event is one of the largest and most recognised projects of HSE University, which allows participants to gain university admission with a full or partial scholarship. Registration for the competition in Russian is already underway. Soon, registration for the HSE International Olympiad in English (INTO HSE) will kick off.
‘The Open Doors Olympiad Is a Tool that Helps to Select the Best Students and Ensures Our Stable Development in Science’
A meeting of the Association of Global Universities was held in the White Hall of the Durasov House at HSE University. The participants welcomed new members of the association, summed up the results of the work in 2023 and outlined goals for the next year. They paid special attention to the International Open Doors Olympiad, which attracts students from all over the world. Interest in the Olympiad is growing as foreign applicants get the opportunity to study at leading Russian universities for free.