Far Eastern Federal University (Russian: Дальневосто́чный федера́льный университе́т, Dalnevostochny federalny universitet) is a public university in Vladivostok, Primorsky Krai, Russia.
In 2023 the university was ranked #434 by QS World University Rankings and among the 100 best universities by Forbes.[2]
History
FEFU was established in 1899 during the Russian Empire era by a special order of Tsar Nicholas II as the Eastern Institute (Восточный институт) as a higher education institution specializing in oriental studies and training for administrative, commercial and industrial institutions in the Far East. The main goal of the university was to train personnel for administrative, commercial and industrial institutions in the East Asian part of Russia and adjacent states. The main courses were the languages: Chinese, Japanese, Manchu, Korean and Mongolian, history and political organization of the Eastern states, jurisprudence etc.[citation needed] The university was reformed into State Far Eastern University (Государственный дальневосточный университет) by Far Eastern Republic authorities in 1920 during the Russian Civil War, until it was closed in the 1930s under Joseph Stalin. It was reinstated in 1956 as Far Eastern State University by the Council of Ministers of the USSR, two years after Nikita Khrushchev visited Vladivostok. In 2000, its English name was changed to Far Eastern National University; however, the name in Russian remained unchanged and references to the university under its old name were common. In 2008, the university was reformed again by presidential decree into its current form, officially changing the name to Far Eastern Federal University and a new purpose-built campus planned. The university was merged with the Far Eastern State Technical University (FESTU), Pacific State University of Economics (TSUE) and the Ussuriysk State Pedagogical Institute (USPI).[3]
The University has a branch in Hakodate (Japan). The official name of the school is Hakodate School of Far Eastern Federal University. It was opened in 1994 with the assistance of the city of Hakodate and public organizations. The main focus is on the study of the Russian language. Students also study Russian economics, history, literature and geography.[13] The Hakodate branch, however, is set to close in 2025 due to declining enrollment following the war against Ukraine in 2022.[14]
International programs
FEFU offers international programs combining Internet and face-to-face modes of learning. However, with the war Russia launched against Ukraine in 2022, many of these partnerships are now paused or closed.
A dual degree program with University of Maryland University College (UMUC), USA, started in 1991 as a classical face-to-face program. In 1999 it became one of the first online dual degree programs in Russia. By October 2003, 265 FEFU students graduated from UMUC with bachelor's degrees in Business and Management, along with their Russian university degrees. Since 1999, UMUC accepts 90 FEFU credits of 120 credits total, required for the undergraduate degree, and offers ten online courses for the remaining 30 credits. Another dual degree program with University of Southern Queensland (USQ), Australia, started in 2001. USQ participates in a number of such programs, but FENU was its first Russian university affiliate.[citation needed]
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