On November 25, the international educational project "Winter University for Engineering Sciences" started at Samara National Research University named after Academician S.P. Korolev. The program annually brings together engineering students from around the world and in 2025 is being implemented within the framework of the national project "Youth and Children".
This year, the "Winter University" is being held simultaneously at three Russian venues — at Samara University, Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, and Yaroslav the Wise Novgorod State University. Each university is responsible for its own educational module, formed based on its scientific competencies.
In 2025, more than 200 students from 11 countries came to Samara — from Belarus, China, India, Serbia, South Africa, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, as well as participants from Russian regions.
The Samara module of the "Winter University" is dedicated to the direction "Integrated Technologies in the Creation of Aerospace Equipment" — a key scientific and industrial specialization of the region.
Victor Soifer, President of Samara University, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, emphasized the importance of the university's participation in the project: "In 2022, Samara University was one of the first to join the large-scale state initiative to create advanced engineering schools, which is being implemented in our country today. This program, supported by the President of Russia, is designed to solve a key task — to provide strategically important enterprises with young, proactive specialists. The Advanced Engineering School of Samara University has become a testing ground for a new model of engineering education. Over the past years, we have created 17 new modern educational spaces. These include two cyber-physical factories — experimental production facilities for small-sized gas turbine engines and small spacecraft, as well as a digital factory for regional aviation systems and unmanned aerial vehicles. I believe you will have the opportunity to learn about their work. I wish you bright discoveries, fruitful work, and belief in your own strength!"
For nearly two weeks, project participants will work in two areas: "Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS)" and "Aerospace Systems Engineering".
The "Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS)" track includes:
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fundamentals of aerodynamics and materials science;
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practical design and assembly of UAVs;
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issues of reliability and safety;
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innovative solutions and promising directions for the development of unmanned technologies.
Within the "Aerospace Systems Engineering" direction, students will study:
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aircraft engine production technologies;
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design using additive technologies;
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the design of space engines and fuel systems;
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space navigation.
Classes are conducted in Russian and English. Special attention is paid to environmental aspects of engineering and new technological solutions.
At the end of the program, international teams will present their own engineering projects, developed within their chosen specialization, to experts.
Makar Goncharov, a student from Belarusian State University of Transport, shared: "As soon as I learned about the opportunity to study at the 'Winter University', I immediately made every effort to get here, I passed the selection process at my university. I believe that participation in the international Winter University is an excellent opportunity to meet students from other countries with similar experiences and from related fields. At the university in Belarus, I am studying in the specialty 'Microprocessor Information and Control Systems', which are also used in drones. I consider this direction extremely promising and want to develop further in the field of UAVs. We follow the news, so I know that this field is developing particularly rapidly in the Samara region now. I look forward to the excursion to a specialized UAV enterprise."
Participants can expect a rich cultural program: excursions, masterclasses, meetings, and events that will introduce students to the history, engineering heritage, and modern life of the Samara region and Russia.