Registration opens for the VIII International Olympiad in Russian as a Foreign Language "Lobachevsky/RU"

Registration for the VIII International Olympiad in Russian as a Foreign Language "Lobachevsky/RU" opens on December 1. The winners and prize winners of the Olympiad will have the opportunity to study tuition-free in master's programmes in Russia within an intergovernmental quota.

The Lobachevsky/RU Olympiad aims to increase interest in learning Russian, attract foreign citizens and compatriots living abroad to study in Russia, and assess the communicative skills of students learning Russian as a foreign language.

Last year, 1,019 foreign participants from 88 countries around the world registered for the Olympiad. The top 10 countries in terms of the number of participants included Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, China, Nigeria, Tajikistan, Turkey, Egypt, Kyrgyzstan, Algeria and Syria. A total of 65 individuals were awarded prizes and became winners of the 2025 Olympiad. Of these, 21 were admitted as students to Lobachevsky University under master's degree programmes on a tuition-free basis.

Foreign citizens and stateless persons aged 14 and over are welcome to participate in the Olympiad. However, foreign citizens from countries where Russian is an official language are not eligible to compete. All relevant information regarding the Olympiad can be found on the official website.

The Olympiad is held in three stages from December 1, 2025 to March 27, 2026. To take part,  applicants must fill in the registration form on the website and complete the online task of the first stage before March 1, 2026.

Oleg Trofimov, UNN Rector, notes the significance of the Olympiad for both international students and the entire educational system. He stated, "Lobachevsky University will be hosting the Lobachevsky/RU Olympiad for the eighth consecutive year. This is a significant project that helps attract motivated students from other countries to Russian universities. Over time, interest in participating in the Olympiad has steadily increased. It has become a trademark not only of Lobachevsky University, but also of the Nizhny Novgorod region, contributing to the development of international relations of Russia’s regions. We hope that the winners of this Olympiad will once again choose to study at Russian universities, including Lobachevsky University."

Lobachevsky University has been hosting the Lobachevsky/RU International Olympiad in Russian as a Foreign Language since 2018. Since 2020, the Olympiad has been conducted remotely. In 2021, the Lobachevsky/RU Olympiad was added to the list of events organised by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, which entitles the winners and prize-winners of the competition to study in Russia free of charge in master's programmes within the intergovernmental quota.