MOSCOW, November 9 (RIA Novosti) – Almost one in five Russian higher education establishments show “symptoms of inefficiency,” according to preliminary results of an annual governmental check.
The study by the Education and Science Ministry covered 1,053 colleges and universities, including 480 private establishments.
Evaluation criteria included graduate employment rate and the number of foreign students, among other things, the ministry said in a statement.
More than 18 percent of colleges covered by the study were found lacking in efficiency, ministry head Dmitry Livanov said Friday.
State-run colleges, which dominate on the Russian education market, performed better, with only 7.5 percent deemed inefficient, compared to 35 percent for private colleges, Livanov said.
Colleges and universities that flunked the rating will have the opportunity to improve their performance, but could otherwise face overhaul or closure, the minister said.
The ministry’s inaugural study of colleges’ efficiency, rolled out last year, was criticized for flawed criteria that allowed for direct comparison of tech and humanities colleges. The criteria list was amended this year to take into account a college’s professional profile.
Livanov’s ministry is leading a controversial crusade to boost the performance of Russian education and academic research.
The campaign already saw the de-facto dismantlement of the Russian Academy of Sciences, also over inefficiency allegations.