Interfax publishes 2026 National Ranking of Universities
MOSCOW. June 24 (Interfax) - Interfax Group has presented its annual National Ranking of Universities (NRU) for 2026.
The list of the best universities in Russia is led by Lomonosov Moscow State University, followed by National Research Nuclear University MEPHI in second place, National Research University Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT) in third, Higher School of Economics National Research University in fourth, Novosibirsk State University in fifth, followed by St. Petersburg State University, Tomsk State University, ITMO University, Kazan (Privolzhsky) Federal University and RUDN University.
The top 20 universities also include Bauman Moscow State Technical University, MISIS National University of Science and Technology, Yeltsin Ural Federal University, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Southern Federal University, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (Ranepa), Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, Siberian Federal University, Far East Federal University and the Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University.
Several quantitative and qualitative adjustments were made to the methodology of the NRU for 2026. The universities' activities were assessed according to six parameters: education, research, social environment, cooperation, innovation and entrepreneurship and brand.
The "education" rating uses information from Interfax's SPARK information systems, to rate the "usefulness" of companies and organizations with which agreements on organizing work placements and targeted training for students have been signed, with the aim of minimizing the formal approach to organizing work placements.
The "cooperation" rating now incorporates analysis of universities' strategic development programs using data from SPARK Interfax. This rating takes into account cooperation with high-tech businesses and research organizations, in order to not only track the trajectory of universities participating in Priority-2030 and other development programs, but also to assess universities' contribution to the development of the regional economy and to technological sovereignty.
The "innovation and entrepreneurship" rating now uses expanded data on members of the business elite - founders and executives - who graduated from a specific university between 1980 and 2020. These materials are used to assess the implementation of the Startup as Diploma program at universities.
The distribution of universities in consolidated ratings and ratings by separate parameters has changed noticeably as a result.
The highest ranking universities in the list for 2026 are the country's strongest - traditional and technical/technological universities. All of Russia's federal and almost all national research universities are represented in the top-100 consolidated ranking.
Some universities have moved by several places compared with the NRU 2025 ranking, with the Ufa University of Science and Technology, the Ufa State Petroleum Technical University and the Petroleum Higher School of Almetyevsk in the Republic of Tatarstan making significant gains.
Several medical universities also entered the top-100 consolidated rating, including the Volga Region Research Medical University, the Saint Petersburg State Pediatric Medical University, the Bashkir State Medical University and the Kursk State Medical University. The list also featured Russia's strongest medical universities -Sechenov University, Pirogov University, the North-Western State Medical University, the First Pavlov State Medical University of St. Petersburg and the Siberian State Medical University.
The rating also uses data on agricultural universities, founded by both the Agriculture Ministry and the Education Ministry, which are the most active participants of the rating research. The assessment now includes two agricultural territories in the new regions - the Donetsk Agrarian Academy and the Lugansk National Agrarian University.
The NRU project assessed the activities of 395 universities in Russia. The rankings comprise all of the country's prominent universities, including 29 national research universities, 10 federal ones, 33 flagship universities, as well as 133 universities participating in the Priority 2030 program. Moreover, 27 non-state universities were also assessed.
The evaluation was completed based on data from questionnaires completed by representatives of universities; available public data posted on institutions' websites; public data from the information resources of Russia's Ministry of Science and Higher Education; as well as information from Interfax's SPARK and SCAN information and analytical systems.
