Start of the new academic year at HSE Graduate School of Business

At the HSE Graduate School of Business (GSB) campus on Shabolovka, Knowledge Day was traditionally filled with vibrant partner activities, guest lectures, and master classes by representatives of the country’s leading companies, as well as the opening of a new dedicated Avito classroom. In the 2025/2026 academic year, more than 5,500 students will study at GSB, including 950 first-year bachelor’s students and 1,050 first-year master’s students, among them 718 international students from 63 countries.

As part of Knowledge Day, there were master classes, booth sessions, and other activities organized by partner companies: Sber, EkoNiva, X5, Avito, Axenix, TeDo, Ozon Bank, UniRus, Wildberries & Russ, Arenadata. Students explored opportunities for internships and career development and received advice from industry representatives.

HSE GSB’s own departments also presented their activities: the Student Affairs Office, the Career Center, the International Exchange Center, and the “New in Management” project team. At a dedicated booth session, 20 student clubs showcased their work and invited first-year students to take part in the school’s community life.

Alexander Gabrielov

Deputy Director, HSE Graduate School of Business

“Today, the HSE Graduate School of Business is the school of first choice for talented and ambitious students. Our key principle in creating and implementing programmes is close collaboration with future employers — the country’s leading companies. Together with business, we create a unique educational experience and develop the most in-demand competencies, which give our graduates a competitive edge at the start of their careers.”

A special highlight of the celebration was the opening of the new dedicated Avito classroom. The symbolic launch of the joint educational programme with Avito in the new classroom was carried out by Valery Katkalo, Director of the HSE Graduate School of Business; Sergey Piven, Managing Partner at Avito; Tatyana Semina, Head of Avito’s Intern Development Programmes; and Mikhail Komarov, Academic Supervisor of the Master’s Programme and Professor at the HSE GSB Department of Business Informatics.

Throughout the day, many greetings and best wishes were extended to GSB students by the school’s partners.

Sergey Zolotarev

Founder and Director of Strategic Development, Arenadata

“Developing educational competencies is one of our strategic priorities. For many years, Arenadata has invested in developing its own Training Center, where experienced practitioner-teachers work. We actively collaborate with leading universities in Russia and CIS countries, sharing educational materials and the latest developments in creating products and services. It is especially valuable for us that our expertise was recognized during the opening of the academic year for the ‘Data Analysis Technologies in Business’ programme at the HSE Graduate School of Business. This confirms the correctness of our chosen path and the importance of our contribution to the development of education.”

The HSE Graduate School of Business continues to develop a modern educational ecosystem built around creative thinking, results-oriented leadership, and close integration with business.

We wish everyone who joined GSB this year inspiration, confidence, and new career achievements!