Why do postgraduate students need an extra hour a day, for how many years can one write a dissertation, and why only in Russian? On why postgraduate programmes are needed we spoke with Candidate of Sciences (Engineering), Head of the SUSU Centre for Doctoral Studies Natalia Shaburova.
– How many postgraduates and degree candidates are studying at SUSU today? What is the dynamics compared to previous years?
– Today, 404 people are studying in postgraduate programmes at SUSU. The number of people assigned to prepare a dissertation for the degree of Candidate of Sciences (degree candidates) equals 31 people.
As for the dynamics of changes in the number of postgraduate students, it can be noted that there has been a slight decrease in them (about by 10 people annually) over the past three years. However, given the decrease in the number of admissions targets in this period, this change can be called positive. That is, we manage to maintain a balance between the number of admissions and graduates.
As for the number of degree candidates, we have seen an increase in interest in this form of preparing candidate dissertations in recent years. Compared to 2022, the number of attached persons has doubled. The majority of degree candidates are in the humanities.
I would also like to note that for the 2025/2026 academic year, we have received 65 state-funded places, which is 11 places more than in the last academic year. Therefore, we are looking forward to the start of the admissions campaign and meeting new postgraduates.
– How many students from other universities of Chelyabinsk enrol in SUSU postgraduate programmes? From other cities? Countries? Are there any success stories when someone, let us say, from Mozambique enrolled in our postgraduate programme, defended their dissertation, and stayed?
– Students who completed Specialist or Master’s degree programmes at SUSU make up the most number of our postgraduates. Today, out of 404 postgraduate students, 318 obtained Specialist or Master’s degree at SUSU, and 86 people obtained degrees at other universities. That is, about a fifth of postgraduate students come to us from other universities.
Postgraduates from countries of the near and far abroad are actively enrolling. These countries include Azerbaijan, Brazil, Ghana, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Kazakhstan, Cameroon, China, Congo, Nigeria, Syria, Togo, Uzbekistan, Ethiopia.
It is quite hard for students from the far abroad to prepare a dissertation on time. A long time is required for language adaptation, since the text of the dissertation must be in Russian. It is worth noting that there are very motivated international postgraduate students who persistently pursue their goal and can defend their dissertation in 2 or even 4 years after graduation.
As for success, in some countries even our postgraduate diploma grants its owner a high status, and if a postgraduate student returns to their country with a diploma of Candidate of Sciences, they certainly gain many privileges.
Most international postgraduates return to their home countries after completing their studies. But some of them manage to fall in love with Russia during their years of studying in the Bachelor’s, Master’s and postgraduate programmes, even start families, accept citizenship and stay in our country.
For example, last summer, five years after graduation, Rev Waskaduwe Siri Sarana Thero from Sri Lanka defended his candidate dissertation and is now working at the department related to his major at SUSU.
Mostafa Abotaleb from Egypt became a citizen of the Russian Federation and is getting ready for an early defence of his dissertation in information technologies.
– What is the advantage of postgraduate studies over degree candidacy? Is it really only in a scholarship? How do postgraduate studies help candidates defend their dissertation faster?
– Postgraduate training involves daily work within the walls of the university. Each postgraduate has his own workplace at the department, s/he is an integral part of the scientific team. Therefore, s/he has the opportunity to consult with his/her academic advisor at any time and seek help from the staff members of any department and laboratories of our university. Postgraduates take part in contractual and grant work of their departments. Thanks to this, their works are regularly published and they have the opportunity to receive an increased scholarship. Namely this active work of postgraduates together with their academic advisor allows them to prepare a dissertation on time and successfully defend it.
In addition, postgraduates have "checkpoints": sessions, certification events, at which they need to report on the results they have achieved. This mobilizes and motivates postgraduate students to concentrate on scientific work.
Degree candidates are, as a rule, people who work outside the university. And like postgraduate students, they have access to a library and research equipment, but their time for using all this is limited. This form of preparation requires more diligence and self-organization from a degree candidate.
– Where do SUSU postgraduates prefer to defend their works: at our dissertation councils, or do they go to other universities and cities?
– Of course, defending your dissertation within the walls of your home university is preferable. Here, as they say, "even the walls help". But this is not a question of preference, but rather the availability of a dissertation council for the required speciality at SUSU or even at another university in Chelyabinsk. We have several scientific specialities for training, for which there are only one or two dissertation councils in all of Russia, and they are not in Chelyabinsk.
– Foreign language and philosophy are mandatory subjects for all specialities, because they are required to pass candidate examinations. What other subjects, in addition to the speciality-related ones, do SUSU postgraduates study?
– Until 2022, our postgraduates studied according to the Federal State Educational Standard programmes. These programmes included a large number of educational disciplines that were certainly useful, but took time away from the main scientific work (preparing dissertation sections, publications, participating in conferences). Since 2022, we have switched to the Federal State Requirements programmes and the only educational disciplines left are those that provide for passing candidate examinations and taking teaching practical training.
– Is your department engaged in doctoral studies, in what programmes and, if so, please tell us briefly about them.
– I would like to note that doctoral studies, like attachment, are, unlike postgraduate studies, not a level of higher education, but forms of additional professional training for a period of three years. Admissions to doctoral studies, like attachment, are available throughout the entire academic year. That is, there are no strict deadlines for the admissions campaign for these forms of training. The list of specialities for which training in doctoral studies is possible is limited by the scientific specialities of the dissertation councils that function at our university. Mandatory requirements for admission to doctoral studies are the holding of a candidate of sciences degree and a petition from the organization that recommends you. The main requirement for the topic of the doctoral dissertation of applicants to doctoral studies is the presence of similar grant or contractual work at our university.
I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate postgraduate students, SUSU degree candidates and, of course, their academic advisors on the Postgraduates Day. I want to wish each of them a timely start for defence of their dissertation and the ability to prioritize in order to find an extra hour each day to get everything done.