Funding Opportunities

Russian government scholarship (Quota) refers to the competitive selection of non-Russian applicants to a fixed number of state-funded places under doctoral programmes, financed by subsidies from the federal budget of the Russian Federation.

Foreign citizens, stateless persons, and Russian nationals residing abroad, who hold a Master’s or Specialist degree, may apply for tuition-free PhD studies.

Admission 2026: 

Applications are accepted February 02 - February 27, 2026 (18:00 Moscow time)

Selection procedure: 
1. Complete your online application 

February 02 - February 27, 2026 (18:00 Moscow time)

Application documents:

The selection procedures for applicants to the quota places are held in the portfolio consideration format. The composition of the portfolio for participation in the selection for the quota is presented in the portfolio composition program.The documents can be submitted in Russian or English.

Only for Full-time Advanced Doctoral Programme: 
- Valid language proficiency certificate (English, French or German)
>English - TOEFL, Linguatest (you may submit any of the certificates)
>German - B2, C1, ZOP, KDP, GDP, TestDaF, ZDfB, PWD (for applicants for Doctoral school of History, Doctoral school of Philisophy or Doctoral school of Philology only)
>French - DELF B2, DALF C1 (for applicants for Doctoral school of History, Doctoral school of Philisophy or Doctoral school of Philology only)

2. Application is reviewed by HSE Doctoral schools during the competitive selection stage

March 09 - March 24, 2026

 Doctoral schools shall independently determine the procedures for holding interviews with candidates.

The working languages for admission under the Quota are English or Russian (depending on the doctoral programme selected by the applicant).

Interviews may be held in long-distance mode.

3. Final decisions on admissions shall be made no later March 27, 2026

The doctoral school shall nominate students who have been selected for admission for approval by the HSE Admissions Committee.

A list of successful candidates will be published on this webpage. 

4. Accepted candidates must provide a set of documents required for admission to HSE  before April 3, 2026.

 Documents required for admission to HSE:

1. a scanned copy of your completed application with a photo attached (3x4, color or black and white, matte) with personal signature;

2. a scanned copy of your academic credentials (i.e., diploma/degree certificate) with notarized translation in Russian.

(If you don’t have a diploma/degree certificate, and if this is a common practice for the country where your academic institution is located, you may provide a transcript or any other official document thereby confirming your level of education.)

3. a scanned copy of medical document confirming that you have no medical contraindications for your studies in Russia with notarized translation in Russian (valid for 6 months);

4. a scanned copy of medical document confirming that you do not have HIV/AIDS with notarized translation in Russian (valid for 3 months);

5. a scanned copy of medical document confirming that you do not have all types of hepatitis (A, B, C) and tuberculosis with notarized translation in Russian (valid for 12 months). Immunization cards are not accepted;

6. a scanned copy of your ID (passport), which you intend to use for your travel to Russia (pages with personal data) - please be advised that your ID (passport) must be valid for at least 18 months from your intended date of entry. The intended entry date cannot be earlier than September 1, 2026;

All documents must be accompanied by a notarized Russian translation.

A complete set of documents must be sent to admissionphd@hse.ru before April 3, 2026.

You need to provide original documents before the start of the academic year in person to the Admission Office for Doctoral Studies to the following address: Higher School of Economics, 11 Pokrovsky boulevard, room D209, Moscow, Russian Federation.

You may send the set of the documents via post to the following address: Office of Doctoral Studies, Higher School of Economics, 20 Myasnitskaya Ulitsa, Moscow, Russian Federation, 101000 (Российская Федерация, 101000, Москва, Мясницкая ул., д. 20, Высшая школа экономики, Управление аспирантуры и докторантуры).

If you wish to turn down an offered state-funded place, please make sure you send a notice stating this refusal in free form to the HSE Office of Doctoral Studies by April 3, 2026 (e-mail:  admissionphd@hse.ru).

Additional funding

There is also an Advanced Doctoral Programme where students receive a monthly stipend of 40 000 RUB. Once you've been admitted as a winner of quota grant you may also apply additional required documents for an Advanced programme. The documents for participation in the selection for the Advanced Doctoral Program are attached together with the application for participation in the selection for the basic track, the intention to participate in the selection for the program also had to be indicated when applying for quota selection.