Minister of Education Sergei Kravtsov, Minister of Science and Higher Education Valery Falkov, and Head of the Federal Service for the Supervision of Education and Science (Rosobrnadzor) Anzor Muzayev presented reports on changes to the state final examinations in history and social studies.
Minister of Education Sergei Kravtsov announced the introduction of an oral history examination for all ninth-grade students prior to the main state exam. He also noted that the new exam is scheduled for implementation in the 2027–2028 academic year and will be conducted as a state final examination admission test in January through April.
Minister of Science and Higher Education Valery Falkov announced an expansion of university programmes and specialisations that will accept the Unified State Exam in history as an entrance examination. This year, the number of such programmes will increase to 43, including fields such as international and public policy, journalism, law, legal studies, advertising, public relations, and others.
Head of Rosobrnadzor Anzor Muzayev also announced upcoming pilot testing of these innovations in certain regions, with a feedback from the teaching community.
Presidential Aide Vladimir Medinsky noted that these measures are being implemented in response to the Presidential instruction to ensure a smooth and comfortable transition for both students and teachers from the social studies exam to history examination.
Following the meeting, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, and Rosobrnadzor were instructed to conduct a broad information outreach to teachers and parents.
The meeting participants also discussed issues of Russian-Belarusian cooperation in history education. Head of the Presidential Directorate for State Humanitarian Policy Vladimir Bocharnikov reported on the results of joint work and outlined plans for further collaboration with Belarusian partners on the mutual evaluation and review of history textbooks, as well as efforts to preserve the memory of common heroes and historical figures.
Deputy Dean of the Faculty of History at Lomonosov Moscow State University Oksana Solopova presented a set of proposals on behalf of the Russian-Belarusian Expert Advisory Council on History, based on the results of the Council’s activities.
The participants also discussed the current state of history policy in post-Soviet countries and prospects for expanding cooperation in history education. Reports on these topics were presented by Vladimir Bocharnikov and Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Alimov.
During the meeting of the Interdepartmental Commission, the participants also reviewed preparations for the 3rd International Scientific and Practical Conference, Greater Altai – the Ancestral Homeland of the Turks, scheduled for September 2026 in Kazakhstan.