RUDN University

The Peoples' Friendship University of Russia, also known as RUDN University, is an educational and research institution located in Moscow. It was established in 1960 to provide higher education to Third World students. It became an integral part of the Soviet cultural offensive in nonaligned countries.

The Soviet government founded the university on 5 February 1960. Its stated objective during the height of the Cold War was to help developing nations. Many students from developed countries also attended the university. On 22 February 1961, the university was named Patrice Lumumba University after the Congolese independence leader Patrice Lumumba, who had been killed in a coup that January. The stated purpose for establishing the university was to give young people from Asia, Africa and Latin America, especially from poor families, an opportunity to be educated and to become qualified specialists.[2] The organizations that have been mentioned as founders of the university are the All-Union Central Soviet of Trade Unions, the Soviet Afro-Asian Solidarity Committee, and the Soviet Associations Union of Friendship and Intercultural Relationship.[3]

Professor Sergey Vasilievich Rumiantsev, Doctor of Engineering, was the first Rector of the University. He took an active part in the foundation of the university and remained its Rector till 1970. In 1960, Russian language studies for international students started at the preparatory Faculty. On 1 September, Russian language studies were introduced at the six main faculties of the PFU (Engineering faculty, faculty of History and Philology, Medical faculty, Agricultural faculty, faculty of Science, faculty of Law and Economics).

The first 288 students from 47 countries graduated in 1965. Around that time international construction teams started to appear and the first student teams of KVN were organized (later on, the PFUR KVN team became one of the most famous teams in the country).