Stages of postgraduate study. Postgraduate studies - what is it? Postgraduate education system: why is it needed and what does it give?

Many students choose to continue their studies after receiving their diploma. Some people understand that science is close to them, while others do not mind immediately improving their qualifications and becoming candidates for more prestigious positions.

All that remains is to understand the different forms of education. This is what we will do in the article.

A postgraduate school is a special structural unit of a university or research institute that trains first-degree scientists—candidates of sciences. A graduate student is a person who has received a higher education or even a master’s degree, entered graduate school to defend his dissertation and become the holder of an academic degree.

By the way, the word itself "graduate student" translated from Latin as "striving for something".

Of course, they continue to study in graduate school. This can be done on a full-time or part-time basis. In the first case, the duration of study is 3 years, in the second – 4. In addition, they are actively engaged in scientific work: collecting and preparing materials for a future dissertation, consulting with their supervisor.


Postgraduate students will have to defend their dissertation as members of the dissertation council at a particular educational institution.

Also, graduate students must pass the candidate minimum. In fact, nothing to worry about, just regular exams. Among them are exams in the specialty, foreign language and philosophy of science. Another important clarification: if you are a graduate student at a university, you must also engage in teaching activities. Typically, graduate students become research assistants.

Competition is one of the forms of training scientific personnel. Scientists themselves work on their dissertation research and, with good results, can count on receiving a PhD degree.

As a rule, already established scientific workers apply for applications - people who already work in higher educational institutions or research institutes, have managed to acquire the necessary knowledge and have even written a Ph.D. thesis.

That is, they actually do not need to undergo postgraduate training, which means there is no need for teaching at the chosen department or participation in conferences.


All their time is spent on preparing and properly filing the dissertation research.

The master's program is for students who have received a bachelor's degree and want to improve their qualifications, study selected subjects in depth and prepare a scientific paper on a specific topic.

Residency is a form of advanced training for doctors. Students complete their studies at medical universities, and then enter residency in order to become highly qualified professionals and have the right to carry out independent medical practice (after completion of residency, a special certificate is issued).


Postgraduate studies are focused primarily on training scientists. After successfully passing the candidate's minimum and defending his dissertation research, the graduate student is awarded an academic degree (Candidate of Science).

There is one pattern - the clearer the outlines of the diploma and the closer the day of its defense, the more often the thought comes to you: “Should I go to graduate school?”

The first thing worth saying is that not all graduate students defend their dissertations and not all candidates devote their lives to science. But then why do we need graduate school? The most common reasons are deferment from the army, a place in a dormitory, many are simply due to inertia, because of the habit of studying and living in a university environment, pride, or generally “just because.”
Others need these 3 years to determine their place in this life, to understand what they really need. One of my friends went to graduate school precisely for these reasons; as a result, she was so fascinated by scientific life that she could not imagine herself in any other activity. She goes to conferences, teaches German and Russian, conducts a special course in her specialty... And she’s very pleased.
But there may also be more practical considerations. If you have, say, a diploma in history, and you work as a manager, graduate school will become a real alternative to a second higher education and will give you the opportunity to reinforce your practical skills with theoretical knowledge and a degree. One of my friends graduated from the physics department, worked during his studies and after as an analyst, and a couple of years later he entered a correspondence graduate school in economics. To my question "why?" I received a logical and expected answer: “Improve your qualifications.” One could ask again “why?”, but it’s clear - for the sake of career advancement. I think he will succeed.
Many girls get a degree for the sake of a teaching career at a university, so as not to sit at home and be exhausted at work from bell to bell. It’s interesting, not dusty and, it seems, still prestigious... A very worthy and enjoyable occupation if you don’t need to support yourself and anyone else.

There is an opinion that any academic degree and even the very fact of studying in graduate school is your additional advantage in the labor market. This is a rather controversial statement; there is no consensus on this matter. Much depends on the specialty and how related the work is to it. If it is directly related, it may turn out to be a prerequisite; if it is not related in any way, it is logical that your HR degree (short for “Human Resources” - HR manager, i.e. the one who recruits new employees) will not impress and he will prefer a person who is less educated, but more experienced. And, for example, abroad (our “PhD” is equivalent to a Western PhD) can even turn out to be a disadvantage: you will be considered “overqualified”, i.e. “too qualified”... In any case. In any case, you shouldn’t delude yourself that a degree will open all doors for you, but if presented correctly, it can be useful. So if you look more closely, you need graduate school!

Full-time or part-time?

The form of training depends on your goals. Do you want to have an extra “bow” on your resume, satisfy your own pride, prove to yourself and the whole world that you are capable of this? - Then it’s probably better to choose correspondence. Many people perceive it as a “defective” option for full-time study, but if you have everything in order with self-discipline and the problem of conscription into the army, as well as a place in a dormitory, is not relevant for you, correspondence graduate school clearly has more advantages. Firstly, you are not obliged to attend classes and/or teach, which means that over time you are much more free. Secondly, you are given not 3 years, but 4, to write your dissertation. Remember how often you were missing one night, one month... so, one year will be missing in the same way.
By law, part-time graduate students have the right to additional paid leave, and your employer is obliged to provide them to you. But in reality, if it is not the organization that guides you, but you went to study on your own initiative, it will take a long time to achieve legal leave and it is not a fact that you will achieve it. It's easier to quit. Employers can be understood - 30 calendar days for entrance exams, an additional vacation of 30 calendar days every year + one day a week with fifty percent pay and three paid months to complete the dissertation... According to my calculations, it turns out to be about 11 months for all 4 years. Personally, I don’t know of a single example where a part-time graduate student took all his allotted vacations (with the exception of my mother, but that was about 20 years ago). Full-time postgraduate study is the choice of those who are aimed at a scientific or teaching career. A significant disadvantage is that experience shows that successfully combining full-time graduate school with a full-time, highly paid job is almost impossible (but this is not important for everyone, right?). It is clear that doing science is pleasant and prestigious. Another question is what a scientific career gives in material terms. It has long become a commonplace that “in Russia they don’t pay for science.” But, firstly, there are knowledge-intensive areas - and large companies working in them need their own developments, and therefore good specialists. First of all, this is IT, some areas of physics, chemistry, geology. One of my geologist friends went to graduate school for precisely this purpose - a higher professional education gives her the opportunity to work practically in a large company, and the degree will allow her to engage in theoretical research there. That is, to implement the well-known formula: “satisfy your own curiosity at someone else’s expense.” And secondly, a high-level specialist in ANY field will provide for himself if desired.
In addition to full-time and part-time postgraduate studies, there is also the opportunity to apply for a job. You are assigned to the department (without entrance exams) and for 5 years you pass the minimum candidate exams, write and defend your dissertation. We are not talking about any kind of study; in fact, it is something like an external study.

Will they take it?

As for the admission conditions, the main requirement is that you must have a diploma of higher professional education (5 years). A bachelor's degree is usually not enough (a bachelor's degree is 4 years, and its logical continuation is not graduate school, but a master's degree). Age restrictions - no older than 35 years for full-time, and 45 for part-time. You can study on a budget basis only once and only if you have Russian citizenship.

What do we rent and how much do we pay?

Everything is standard here: specialty, foreign language, philosophy. Most likely, another 30-page abstract on the specialty and an interview with the proposed supervisor. If you have a master's degree and you took philosophy or a foreign language as your final exams, they can be counted. A definite plus is the presence of publications, but their absence is not critical. If you are applying for budget funding, you will have to go through a competition. What it is depends on the popularity and openness of the institute - about some you can say in advance that even submitting documents is useless. That is, they will, of course, accept you, but you still won’t be able to get in - all the places have long been distributed among “our own”. Competition for institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Russian Academy of Sciences) can reach up to 4-5 people per place, for some departments of the RAGS (Russian Academy of Public Service) - 5-7, for departments of Moscow State University - rarely exceeds 1.5, but usually this is exactly the case , when "everyone is ours." There is usually no competition for paid graduate school; you just need to pass exams. The ideal option is if you manage to convince your superiors that the company is interested in your training. Then it will be called “targeted graduate school” and your employer will pay for it. If not, you pay yourself and this pleasure will cost on average from 1000 to 2000 USD. e. per year; correspondence is cheaper, but not much. And be prepared for the fact that your investment may not end there; for example, you will be required to pay for the dissertation council fee or the work of your opponents. The timing of the exams depends on the institute, usually it is either the period from late May to early July, or September-October. Rarely - in January.

So who needs graduate school?

Postgraduate study is needed - not only for those who dream of becoming a “great scientist” or are simply avoiding the army, this is an additional opportunity for your professional and personal development. Ultimately, you do this for yourself, for your pride and to satisfy your own ambitions. Plus - you get experience in analytical work, writing scientific articles, preparing reports and reports. By the way, many people simply like the process itself: communicating with smart, educated people is worth a lot.
What will graduate school give you besides moral satisfaction and an additional way of self-expression? Education is important not only to receive, but also to be able to use it. Clearly understand what you are doing and for what purpose. Maybe there will be nothing as a result, except for another unnecessary diploma in the back drawer of the desk. Or maybe you will get another promotion, marry an academician, become a Nobel Prize laureate... Everything depends only on you. As always.

Successful completion of a master's degree is not a reason to stop there. Many students choose to move on to the next step of the educational ladder called “graduate study.” For some, obtaining a scientific degree seems pointless. However, for those who want to study their chosen profession from all sides and fully devote themselves to it, graduate school is a breath of air. It gives you the opportunity not just to do science, but also to your future.

What is graduate school?

If higher education in the classical sense involves students attending lectures and other types of classes during which they gain knowledge, then with graduate school the situation is different. Here you will no longer be able to skip classes or pass exams with an automatic grade of C. The ultimate goal of education in this case is for the student to obtain a PhD degree, which is earned through hard work.

Therefore, we can say that graduate school is, in a sense, independent, since it largely involves the work of a student under the guidance of a teacher. In order to ultimately achieve the desired results, the young specialist engages in his own research. Based on its results, he writes a scientific or so-called candidate’s thesis. In the process of developing a project, the student learns not only to assimilate information, but also to analyze it according to various criteria.

Postgraduate forms

Masters planning to connect their lives with science need to know that this can be done under various conditions. Thus, postgraduate studies are allowed in three forms:

• Full-time (daytime).
• Correspondence.
• Job application.

It is immediately worth highlighting the most preferable option for future candidates of science. Of course, because it allows you to combine education with work. Moreover, in most cases, graduate school is a paid education, so you cannot do without a regular income.

Full-time study is suitable for those students who seriously intend to engage in scientific or perhaps even teaching careers. It will allow you to devote more time to research work and consultations with the project manager, while postgraduate study by correspondence noticeably limits these opportunities. However, if you suddenly decide to get a job, you will have to transfer to another form.

The last type of study for graduate students is job-seeking. In order to receive an education in this way, you do not need to pass entrance exams and regularly attend a university. The student is assigned to a specific department with the opportunity to independently write a dissertation and pass exams.

Features of training

Several benefits of earning an advanced degree

Young people in most cases are in a hurry to finish their studies and, after graduating from a master’s degree, begin life in everyday work. And in general, for many people, research work is simply not of interest. However, enrolling in graduate school has its undeniable advantages:

• The prospect of obtaining a prestigious, highly paid position.
• Deferment from the army for males. True, there are some nuances here: postgraduate studies in the correspondence department do not protect you from fulfilling your civic duty; the student must be enrolled in full-time education.
• Opportunity to participate in closed scientific experiments.
• The right to receive a leave of absence, after which it will be possible to be reinstated in the position of a graduate student.

Admission to graduate school

Not every student can engage in scientific work at the chosen university. The applicant must have previously received a master's or specialist's education. They take the following entrance exams to graduate school:

• Philosophy.
• Foreign language (usually English).
• A specialized subject in the chosen specialty.

In addition, the applicant must write an application addressed to the rector and obtain an agreement from the scientific supervisor. If available, the applicant can submit scientific work on a topic related to the specialty of the department. If a student plans to study part-time, he must present to the commission an extract from his work record book.

Tuition fees

Of course, having entered the desired graduate school and taken a budget place, you don’t have to worry about additional expenses. But sometimes it becomes just a dream. The student could have been nervous during the entrance exams, or there was simply a lot of competition among applicants. Well, some faculties do not provide budget places for study at all. Then you have to look for the right amount. Within what limits is it located?

According to official estimates, the cost of training for graduate students in Russia ranges from 55 to 350 thousand rubles per year. The amount of money awarded for obtaining an academic degree depends on the policies of the university and the region in which it is located. In any case, this is a considerable amount, but it provides the student with an education, so these costs are clearly worth it.

As you already understand, graduate school is a means of developing modern science. After all, today's student can become tomorrow's professor and give the world a discovery that will shock him.

University studies are coming to an end, and while some are enjoying the opportunity to relax, others are planning to study further. Does it really make sense to continue studying? Yes. It’s just that those who plan to further connect their activities with science or gain unique experience of independent research and writing projects are moving to another level of training.

What is graduate school?

This is one of the types of postgraduate vocational training. It serves as the main stage in the training of scientists and scientific and pedagogical personnel. During graduate school, people acquire the skill of independently working with scientific research. In other words, this level of education is an excellent opportunity to improve your skills and obtain a scientific title.

Who can become a graduate student?

A person wishing to become a graduate student, as a rule, already has a higher education, and his further studies in graduate school involve writing and defending a dissertation for the degree of Candidate of Sciences. That is, a person who has a master’s or specialist qualification can become a graduate student, and he must also be a citizen of the country in which he plans to study. Otherwise, admission of foreign citizens is carried out in accordance with the regulations of the higher education institution.

Pros of graduate school

Most do not see the prospects that can open up for those who receive a graduate education. For many, the point of further study is to obtain an advanced degree. But its advantages don't end there:

1. This is an opportunity for constant self-improvement. Studying is much easier for young people than for representatives of the older generation. And without constant self-development, achieving significant heights in your chosen activity will not be easy.
2. Engagement in scientific activities. After all, even if a graduate student does not intend to defend a dissertation, he can attend scientific conferences and speak at them, which will provide invaluable experience in public speaking to the scientific public.
3. Opportunity to engage in teaching activities. After completing graduate school, the graduate receives not only a specialty, but also the opportunity to teach at universities.
4. And of course, obtaining a PhD degree - but this is only in the case of defending a dissertation. This immediately opens up many possibilities. In addition to material bonuses, there is an opportunity to subsequently obtain a doctorate degree. And this is already a good prospect for career growth in the chosen field.

Cons of graduate school

In addition to the advantages, there are also disadvantages to being a graduate student. Therefore, before deciding to study further, you should consider not only the positive aspects:

1. This is quite a long way to achieve the goal. You need to be prepared for the fact that you will have to study the same way as before, attend all classes and prepare to defend your dissertation, which is undoubtedly more difficult than coursework.
2. Conducting seminars with students. For some, this is not at all the ultimate dream, because ordinary students (who are not studying at pedagogical universities) do not practice this, because they are not prepared for further teaching activities.

Forms of training

The forms of obtaining this type of education can be as follows:

• full-time;
• correspondence

The differences between correspondence and full-time graduate school are small, but they still exist. Of course, with a correspondence course it is possible to combine work and study, but you will almost always have to study on your own.

Now readers already understand what graduate school is and why some are so eager to go there. The main thing is to adequately assess your capabilities, because, despite all the beautiful words about self-improvement and scientific activity, this all requires self-discipline, dedication and a willingness to constantly learn.

Who is taught here and how to enroll in graduate school

Getting into graduate school is not as difficult as many people think. If you know the subject well and are prepared, then passing the entrance examination will not be difficult for you. What exams are needed for graduate school:

1. A special discipline that corresponds to the program.
2. Philosophy.
3. Foreign language.

Many begin to be at a loss about who they are studying for in graduate school. A list of graduate school specialties is available at each university where a future graduate student intends to study. It is not at all necessary to act only in your own direction - you can choose any one, you just need to be prepared for a larger amount of information.

What documents are needed for admission?

To avoid wasting time and then hastily searching for the necessary documents, it is better to prepare them in advance. Typically the list looks like this:

• application for admission to study and its supplement;
• recommendations of the Academic Council (if any);
• your scientific works and articles that have been published, and if there are none, you need to write an abstract in the desired specialty;
• a copy of the higher education diploma and its insert;
• if you do not enroll immediately after university, but after working at an enterprise, you will need to submit a personal sheet from the personnel department;
• if you work, you need a reference from your place of work;
• 3 photographs - 3 x 4 and one size 4 x 5;
• topic and rationale of the dissertation.

How the training works

Having dealt with the question of what graduate school is, weighing the pros and cons and deciding that further training is necessary, you should get a rough idea of ​​how the educational process is structured.

Each graduate student is assigned a supervisor, under whose strict guidance he works on his dissertation. In addition to the dissertation, the graduate student also has an individual work plan. It indicates the deadlines for submitting the candidate minimum. It also states the dates when you need to submit some parts of the dissertation work.

The list of responsibilities of a graduate student includes attending additional classes that are held in the first year of study. It is also advisable for a graduate student to participate in the work of the department to which he is assigned. If he does not fulfill the calendar plan, he may be expelled.

The effectiveness of postgraduate studies in Russia

Despite the fact that there are a sufficient number of universities in the country, the number of graduate students is decreasing every year. This can be explained by the fact that budget places are being cut, and not everyone has the opportunity to pay large sums for training. But a certain part of experts believe that the lack of efficiency is due to the human factor. It refers to the motivation of graduate students, their values ​​and personal characteristics.

Also, not all graduate students are ready to engage in scientific activities in the future. Some go to graduate school because the award of an academic degree is considered prestigious, others want to extend their student years, and for young people a deferment from the army is a pleasant bonus. Society still continues to believe that it is much easier for a candidate of science to build a career. Perhaps there would be more students willing to continue their studies if they were explained what graduate school is and what opportunities open up for those who defend their dissertation.

A system of multi-level education, which includes obtaining bachelor's and master's degrees, was introduced in our country more than 15 years ago. Disputes over the effectiveness and necessity of such educational practice still continue to this day. However, almost 200 Russian universities now train masters in more than 100 different areas, and their number is constantly growing. What is a master's degree and who needs it?

According to the Law “On Education” of 1992 and numerous decrees of the Ministry of Education (and before that the State Committee for Higher Education), a master’s degree can be called the third level of higher education. It is preceded by a bachelor's degree and complete higher education.

A bachelor receives a basic higher education, without any narrow specialization. As a rule, the duration of a bachelor's degree is 4 years, after which you can immediately begin looking for a job. If your goal is a master’s degree, then a bachelor’s degree from the relevant university is the best “starting platform.”

Complete higher education involves studying for 5 years, after which, having passed state exams and defended your thesis, you become a specialist or certified specialist. Actually, such training existed in Soviet universities and exists in most Russian universities to this day, although the specialty, apparently, is gradually becoming a thing of the past.

Both a bachelor's degree and a specialist's degree are equally considered higher education, therefore, they allow you to enroll in a master's program. We will answer a number of questions regarding obtaining a master's degree.

Who should pursue a master's degree?

Previously, those who decided to devote themselves to an academic career - research and teaching activities or work in the field of high technology - went to master's programs primarily.

Today, this feature of master's programs is preserved in most universities, but every year more and more master's programs with a clear practical focus and narrower specialization appear. We can say that with an increasingly clear transition to the “bachelor’s – master’s” system, the first becomes a source of basic knowledge without specialization, and the second provides more practical and narrow knowledge in the chosen field.

What is the duration and content of the master's program?

The duration of the program is two years. Upon admission, you must present a bachelor's degree, or a certified specialist, or a specialist. In the first two cases, the candidate has the right to free education (first higher education), in the third – only to paid education (second higher education). The master's program includes two components of approximately equal volume - educational and research. Accordingly, upon completion it is necessary, firstly, to pass exams, and secondly, to submit a research work: a master's thesis.

Paid or free?

If previously it was possible to enroll for free only in the master’s program of “your” university, that is, the one where the candidate graduated from a bachelor’s or specialist’s degree, then for several years now this situation has changed: you can enroll in a budget department at another university.

For those who have chosen a scientific career, we note that a master's degree is an excellent preparation for entering graduate school with the prospect of obtaining a PhD degree. During the master's degree, the future graduate student gets used to independent scientific work. At the same time, the master's program in no way replaces or duplicates the latter, since, unlike graduate school, the academic part of the program is no less important for preparing a master's degree than the research component.

Postgraduate studies

The candidate's degree is achieved by defending a dissertation after studying for up to 3 years in full-time graduate school (or up to 4 years in part-time graduate school). During this time, you will have to prepare several scientific publications and pass 3 candidate exams - usually philosophy, a foreign language and a specialty exam. In addition, you will have the opportunity (or even the responsibility) to teach seminars and take exams - which is important if you are interested in teaching.

As mentioned above, a master's degree can help you on your way to graduate student status. In addition, it is necessary to study well, write scientific articles, and speak at university conferences. The determining factor is the opinion of the academic council of the university and your supervisor about you.

In addition to universities, postgraduate studies exist at various research institutes. Admission of postgraduate students to scientific institutes is an order of magnitude lower than to postgraduate studies at educational institutions: every year over 100 thousand applicants enter postgraduate studies at universities, while scientific institutes accept about 17 thousand postgraduate students per year. Thus, the advantages of postgraduate study at research institutes include a lower level of competition for vacant positions. Surely, there are research assistants teaching at your university - you can negotiate with them about internships, and in the future, about admission to graduate school at a research institute.

Obtaining a PhD degree occurs by defending a dissertation before a dissertation council. After a second check of the work (this time by the Higher Attestation Commission - HAC) and with a positive decision of the commission, the applicant receives the coveted “crust” of a Candidate of Sciences.

Some facts:

• The level of proficiency in a foreign language should allow the future candidate of science to translate one page of typewritten text closely to the text in 1 hour.
• For the most part, postgraduate studies are free, but there are also paid ones - especially at non-state universities and in economic specialties.
• Full-time graduate students are granted a deferment from the army for three years; Candidates of Sciences are not subject to conscription.
• If a PhD is not your main goal, you can complete your graduate studies without completing a dissertation. In this case, you will be issued a diploma confirming completion of postgraduate studies and passing the candidate exams.
• The analogue of postgraduate study in military educational institutions will be called adjunct, and in medical institutions - residency.
• A candidate of science can apply for the degree of Doctor of Science by enrolling in doctoral studies, preparing and defending a doctoral dissertation.
• Obtaining an academic degree is possible in the form of a competition. In this case, passing exams and defending a dissertation takes place without interruption from their main place of work; applicants do not enter graduate school or doctoral studies.

Current question: What will a PhD degree give you in the labor market if you are not going to engage in teaching? So, in what case should you consider defending your dissertation:

• If you work in the field of high technology. A candidate's degree in medical, biological, physical, mathematical and other natural sciences guarantees an advantage when hiring highly qualified specialists. This applies to work not only in Russia, but also abroad.
• If you want to become a senior manager in Russia. In the West, domestic personnel with a degree in the humanities (economics, law, sociology) are valued significantly lower than “naturalists.” In the vacancies of our enterprises, one can often find the desirability of having an academic degree - so the decision to defend a dissertation for a future leading lawyer or financial director is strategically justified.

Change is coming

In 2015, new standards for master's and postgraduate studies should come into force, which will seriously tighten the requirements for accreditation of such programs in universities and research institutes. According to these changes, many universities will lose the right to offer master's and doctoral programs. The vacant places will be redistributed in favor of the country's leading universities, which will be able to provide all the requirements for these programs. Moreover, these will not only be universities in the capital, since the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation plans to provide master’s and postgraduate programs to large regional universities.