Published on: 2026-08-27
Source: Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
In a few days, a new academic year will begin, and freshmen will set out to explore the vast universe of the Polytechnic. Surely many of them will want to take everything from student life: new knowledge, new friends, new opportunities…
The teachers will provide knowledge, the students will find friends on their own, and as for opportunities, there are indeed many. These include creative groups, various student interest clubs, scientific communities, and social initiatives. Most importantly, you can engage in extracurricular activities in a mature way: participate in grant competitions and receive support to bring your ideas to life.
If a student or employee wants to obtain funding to implement their idea, where should they start? What grant competitions exist? Who organizes them? Where can this information be found? We have prepared some useful advice.
Social and Youth Grants
In Russia, project and civic activity among youth is actively supported, so there are many various socially-oriented contests. The main information can be found on the website of the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (Rosmolodezh), in the section Rosmolodezh.Grants. There are different support formats: for individuals (ages 14–35), legal entities (universities), and non-profit organizations (NGOs).
A separate story is the grant competitions within forums (for example, “Territory of Meanings”, “Time of the Young”, “Morning”, “Mashuk” and others). A feature of forum competitions: the project must be defended in person at the event venue.
You can also participate in contests through the presidential platform “Russia is a land of opportunity.” For example, right now the website is registering participants and spectators for the grand final of the world’s first international street culture and sports competition “KARDO”, which will take place from September 16 to 20 in Vladivostok.
Presidential Grants Fund holds competitions for non-profit non-governmental organizations.
Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives supports cultural, educational, and creative projects of NGOs (excluding state institutions, state corporations, state companies, and political parties), commercial organizations, municipal institutions and enterprises (excluding municipal treasury institutions), and individual entrepreneurs.
“Grants of the First” — this is the support of initiatives by children and youth, including university projects, within the framework of the “Movement of the First” space.
Grant competitions Potanin Foundation offer a wide range of programs for university staff, teachers, museum workers, sports organizations, and endowment fund employees.
Before applying to participate in the federal event, you can practice in the Polytech internal competition Polytech Project — an open grant competition for youth initiatives at SPbPU.
Grants for scientific and research projects
Grants of the President of the Russian Federation established to support students who have demonstrated outstanding abilities in scientific activities, in the field of arts and sports.
Russian Science Foundation (RSF) holds competitions for young scientists, including projects of scientific groups.
Where to go for help and consultations at Polytechnic?
Polytech Tower — the first point of entry. You can write a message to the VK group, ask a question, get a consultation, or suggest an idea. The group has a chatbot, and the administrators forward requests to relevant experts.
The “Tower Mentors” community consists of alumni, leaders, and staff who help “package” the project, find partners and resources, and act as navigators.
Specialized departments and faculties — here you can discuss the idea at an early stage and receive feedback from teachers and experts.
Step-by-step plan: how a student or employee can get funding.
Clearly formulate the project idea — this will immediately narrow down the range of suitable competitions. Test the idea for viability: talk to different people in the department, in student communities, at the Bashnya, with those who have already won grants. The more feedback you get, the better you will understand what needs to be strengthened in the project.
Turn the idea into a project: identify the problem you are solving, the target audience, expected results, and success metrics. Outline the implementation steps, budget, and necessary resources.
Use the internal capabilities of Polytech. Take part in the Polytech Project contest: this is a chance to refine your application, undergo training, work with a mentor, and defend your project before department heads.
Get expert advice. In the Rosmolodezh.Grants ecosystem, there are mentors and support chats, and at Polytechnic — the “Tower Mentors” and specialized experts.
Choose a suitable grant competition and carefully study the conditions. Pay attention to submission deadlines, participation format (remote or in-person), applicant requirements (individual, legal entity, NGO), and reporting rules.
Log in on the contest website and submit your application. If it is a forum contest, plan your trip and rehearse your presentation. If it is a remote contest, pay special attention to the text part and documents.
After winning, implement the project and report on time. Follow the schedule, record the results, collect photos, videos, and participant feedback — this will be useful for future applications.
Where to find up-to-date information about grant competitions
Official websites and social media of funds and organizers: Rosmolodezh, “Movement of the First,” Presidential Grants Fund, Cultural Initiatives Fund, “Russia — Land of Opportunities,” etc.
Information resources of “Polytech Tower” — they duplicate all important announcements there.
Channel “Captain Grant” (VKontakte, Telegram, MAKS) — a convenient aggregation of opportunities for young people.
Up-to-date information about scientific competitions is accumulated in the section of the SPbPU website “Research activity”.
Practical tips
The project must address a real need of the target audience. Do not try to invent a problem. Conduct a mini-research: survey acquaintances, find out their opinion, analyze statistics.
Use the university’s resources for project implementation: events can be held in Polytech classrooms instead of renting venues in the city.
Talk to those who have already won grants: they will tell you what to pay attention to in the application and during the defense.
Watch the deadlines (for example, you can apply until September 15 for the second stage of the competition “Rosmolodezh. Grants”).
Evaluate the “participation funnel.” Many applications from all over the country are submitted to correspondence contests, while there are fewer for forum-based contests since in-person attendance is required: this may increase the chances of winning.
Examples of successfully implemented projects at Polytechnic
“Trajectory of adaptation.” In 2023, the project the public institute “Adapters” “Trajectory of Adaptation” received a grant of 1,117,000 rubles from Rosmolodezh. The team created the first platform in Russia for experience exchange among university adapter associations. The project became the winner of the All-Russian student competition “Your Move” within the “Doing” track in the category “Person to Person”.
In 2024, “Trajectory of Adaptation” received support from Rosmolodezh in the amount of 4,320,000 rubles to implement the practice in the Northwestern Federal District. The team of activists from the OI prepared a three-day forum attended by more than 30 district universities.
INTERSTATE. In 2023, the MEZHINST24 adapters project won a Rosmolodezh grant of 700,000 rubles. These funds were used to implement an online educational platform and to organize an educational trip.
“Public Institute Mentorship Program.” In 2025, “Adapters” participated in the Rosmolodezh. Grants competition within the overall application of Polytech. An amount of 1,276,120 rubles was allocated for the project “Mentorship Program of the Public Institute.”
“Multilevel Mentorship System ‘Community Trajectory’.” In 2025, Polytechnic received more than 15 million rubles for the development of student communities and mentoring. As part of the project, the student media space “MediaLab” was created, the historical program “Ignite Knowledge” was implemented, the mentoring program of the public institution “Adapters”, the new model of student self-government “Academic Leader”, the project for leaders of student communities “Activation”, and others.
“NeiGhbors.” The dormitory mentors school received a grant of 100,000 rubles in the fall of last year within the framework of the Polytech Project to implement an adaptation mentoring program for first-year students moving into dormitories. Six months later, the team submitted an application for the Rosmolodezh.Grants competition, and the project “Neighbors” already received one million rubles.
“Dive into the world of poetry with PoliPoetry.” In 2026, the winner of the Rosmolodezh.Grants competition was the association “PolyPoetry.” The team won a grant to implement the project “Dive into the World of Poetry with PolyPoetry.” The winners plan to hold two major events: an autumn two-day poetry forum with master classes and an excursion to Komarovo, and a winter poetry evening.
“Advanced career growth program ‘Ticket to the Profession of the Future’.” In 2026, the project of the Youth Policy Department, the Directorate of Pre-University Education and Talent Attraction, and the Career Development Department “Advanced Career Growth Program ‘Ticket to the Profession of the Future'” won the grant competition “Movements of the First” and received funding of 9.3 million rubles.
“Currently, the integration of project activities into education is taking place. There are more opportunities to include in graduates’ portfolios the skills and experience gained through project and social activities, in order to later integrate them with the educational outcomes that students achieve during the learning process, — believes the head of the Youth Policy Department Ivan Khlamov. — We see that the system is changing, with more flexible individual educational trajectories emerging. It is important not only to wait for ready-made conditions but also to propose improvements ourselves and change the environment through our own initiatives. Therefore, if you have an idea — don’t delay: write to the messages of the “Towers” group, someone will contact you and provide feedback. Even if the project is still at the draft stage, it is easier to refine it at an early stage and choose the right grant competition.
Please note; This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.