Since the Faculty does not provide funding to international students, practically all applicants who can afford the tuition fees and living expenses in St. Petersburg will be admitted to programmes, provided they are academically eligible. However, to be admitted to a degree programme the applicant must demonstrate sufficient Russian language proficiency by taking the Russian as a Foreign Language Test (basic level 1). This can be taken either in St. Petersburg or in any other city.

Thus it is important that before submitting an application, prospective students should consider their Russian language skills. If these are poor, and the student intends to take a preparatory course in the Russian language, this should be indicated in the application form together with the duration of the course to be taken. The date on which the student becomes available to commencing studying in the Faculty should be made clear.

Students seeking admission to BA or MA programmes should clearly state the title and level of the programme they wish to follow. Before admission students are advised to check with the Faculty that their chosen programme is available in the year of admission sought, since not every BA or MA programme is available every year. Non-degree programmes can be arranged according to the needs of the prospective student, and thus applications should state as clearly as possible which courses they wish to attend and/or which area of studies they are interested in.