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Saint Petersburg State University

Saint Petersburg State University
Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет
Saint Petersburg State University logo.png
Arms of the State University of Saint Petersburg
Latin: Universitas Petropolitana
Motto Hic tuta perennat
(Here all in safety lasts)
Type Public
Established 1724 (1819)
Rector Nikolai M. Kropachev
Administrative staff
13,000
Students 32,400
Undergraduates 26,872
Postgraduates 5,566
Address 7/9 Universitetskaya Emb., 199034, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Campus Both urban and suburban
Affiliations BRICS Universities League, Campus Europae, Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs
Website http://english.spbu.ru
Timeline
Timeline
  • On February 8, 1819 (O.S.), Alexander I of Russia reorganized the Main Pedagogical Institute into Saint Petersburg University, which at that time consisted of three faculties: Faculty of Philosophy and Law, Faculty of History and Philology and Faculty of Physics and Mathematics
  • 1850: The 1st and 2nd Departments of the Faculty of Philosophy reverted into the Faculty of History and Philosophy and Faculty of Physics and Mathematics, respectively, the latter specializing not only in mathematics and physics, but also in other natural sciences, such as biology and chemistry.
  • 1855: Oriental studies were separated from the Faculty of History and Philology, and the fourth faculty, Faculty of Oriental Languages, was formally inaugurated on August 27, 1855.
  • A decree of the Emperor Alexander II of Russia adopted on 18 February 1863 restored the right of the university assembly to elect the rector. It also formed the new faculty of the theory and history of art as part of the faculty of history and philology.
  • During the 1920s the university, like other higher education institutions in the Soviet Union, became subject to educational experimentation. The structure and status of the faculties and departments of the university underwent major changes. Many of them were merged, split or renamed, new subdivisions were established, independent institutes were merged into the university as faculties, sometimes only to be restored to their old status a few years later.
  • 1925: The Faculty of Geography was opened.
  • 1930s: A number of new faculties were established. The Faculty of Biology opened in 1930, the Faculty of Geology in 1931, the Faculty of Chemistry in 1932, the Faculty of Physics and Faculty of Mathematics and Mechanics in 1933, the Faculty of History in 1934, the Faculty of Philology in 1937. The Faculty of Philosophy and Faculty of Economics split from the Faculty of History in 1940.
  • 1944: The Faculty of Oriental Studies was split from the Faculty of Philology, and the Faculty of Law was re-created.
  • 1961: The Faculty of Journalism split from the Faculty of Philology.
  • 1966: The Faculty of Psychology split from the Faculty of Philosophy.
  • 1969: The Faculty of Applied Mathematics and Control Processes was split from the Faculty of Mathematics and Mechanics.
  • 1989: the Faculty of Sociology was opened.
  • 1991: The university was renamed back to Saint Petersburg State University after the Dissolution of the Soviet Union.
  • 1990s: Three new faculties were opened: the Faculty of Management in 1993, the School of International Relations in 1994 and the Faculty of Medicine in 1995.
  • 2008-2010: Three new faculties were organized: the Faculty of Political Science, the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Dentistry and Medical Technologies.

Saint Petersburg State University (SPbSU, Russian: Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет, СПбГУ) is a Russian federal state-owned higher education institution based in Saint Petersburg. It is the oldest and one of the largest universities in Russia.

It is made up of 24 specialized faculties and institutes, the Faculty of Military Studies, the Academic Gymnasium, the Medical College, the College of Physical culture and Sports, Economics and Technology and the Department of Physical Culture and Sports. The university has two primary campuses: one on Vasilievsky Island and the other in Peterhof. During the Soviet period, it was known as Leningrad State University (Russian: Ленинградский государственный университет). It was named after Andrei Zhdanov in 1948.

Saint Petersburg State University is the second best multi-faculty university in Russia after Moscow State University. In international rankings the university was ranked 240th in 2013/2014 by the QS World University Rankings, it was placed 351–400th by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings and 301–400th by the Academic Ranking of World Universities outperforming the rest of universities in Russia excluding Moscow State University.

The university has a reputation for having educated the majority of Russia's political elite; these include presidents Vladimir Putin and Dimitry Medvedev, both of whom studied Law at the university.


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