The People’s Friendship University of Russia (PFUR), a big draw for Indian students pursuing medical and engineering studies since the 1960s, is starting more courses in the English medium to attract students from abroad, Valeria Belous, head, Department of Asia, PFUR, said on Sunday.
Belous is in the state to raise awareness about PFUR among the new generation of students and to encourage Indian students to study at the university. Belous said that the university this year has opened a Dentistry course in the English medium as part of its efforts to attract more foreign students.
PFUR also has several masters degree courses in the medium and plans to start more in the coming years, she said.
PFUR was started in 1960 by the USSR government to help students from the developing nations of Asia, Africa and South America gain a professional education. In 1961, the university was named after Patrice Lumumba, the African leader. Medicine and engineering apart, the university offers a wide range of courses in subjects like ecology and agriculture and science subjects.
Since the 1960s, PFUR has churned out more than 2,000 Indian professionals. At present, 40 are undergoing studies at the university, which is situated in the south of Moscow, Belous said. Majority of the Indian students - and a large number of them from Kerala - have preferred medicine to other faculties.
But post-USSR and in recent years, the number of Indian students has dropped, with countries like China, Australia and Malaysia offering medicine studies. The medical and engineering courses are six-year ones, but if the preferred medium is Russian, then there is an additional preparatory year to learn the language.
‘’We have 6,000 students from 146 countries studying at our university. More than 500 of the Asian students are from China. We also have students from Mongolia, Vietnam, Iran and Afghanistan. In fact, we have students from 20 Asian countries,’’ Belous said.
Her current visit to Kerala, she said, was to remind Indian students of PFUR’s track record in creating Indian professionals. Accompanied by Andrey E Ershov, chief specialist of Department of Asia, PFUR, she will be holding seminars at Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode with the help of the Russian Cultural Centre. The two officials also plan to visit Chennai.