Published on: 2026-10-02
Source: Moscow Government – Правительства Москвы –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Moscow Transport College is an example of large-scale changes in modern secondary vocational education. Sergei Sobyanin talked about this on his channel in in the messenger “Max”.
“One of the oldest educational institutions in the capital was founded in 1921 as an apprenticeship school for the Northern Railways. Today, it is the largest college preparing specialists for the transport industry. The college comprises three educational sites in the Krasnoselsky, Golovinsky, and Ivanovskoe districts,” noted Sergey Sobyanin.
Source: Mayor of Moscow’s channel in the messenger “Max”
In the Krasnoselsky district, the educational site is located near the major transport hub “Three Stations Square” on Kalanchevskaya Street (building 26, structures 1–3); in Golovinsky — on Mikhalkovskaya Street (building 52); and in Ivanovsky — on Napolny Proezd (building 7). They have 4,200 students studying 17 in-demand professions and specialties related to the following fields:
— management and maintenance of rolling stock: assistant driver, technical operation of railway rolling stock, operation of transport electrical equipment and automation;
— repair and maintenance of infrastructure, automation, and energy facilities: specialist in comprehensive maintenance of railway track; technical operation and maintenance of electrical and electromechanical equipment; operation and maintenance of electrical and electromechanical equipment; relay protection and automation of power systems; electric fitter at traction substations; electric fitter for signaling, centralization, and blocking devices; metro electrician locksmith;
— transportation, service, logistics, and documentation: document support for management and archival science, operational activities in logistics, organization of transportation and management in transport, service in transport.
In recent years, the college has been undertaking extensive work to modernize the educational environment, setting up new workshops and classrooms for practical training in all areas of study. From 2023 to 2026, 42 classrooms, 15 laboratories, and five workshops have been re-equipped and upgraded.
“The strategic partner of the college is the Moscow Metro. Its specialists participate in the development of educational programs, and students acquire the knowledge and skills they will need at a specific workplace. Starting from the first year, the students spend one day a week studying at the Metro facilities, and from the second year, they undergo internships in specialized departments. Practical lessons make up 70% of the training program,” said Sergey Sobyanin.
Source: Telegram channel of the Mayor of Moscow “Max”
In partnership with the Moscow Metro, an educational project “We’re on the Same Path” has been implemented since 2021, aimed at building career trajectories and early employment of students. Thus, six new programs have been developed and another 20 have been updated.
In addition, together with the Moscow Metro, an educational and production center (cluster) “Moscow Transport” has been established within the framework of the federal project “Professionality”, on the basis of which more than 200 training programs have been developed.
Every year, the Moscow Metro places orders for specialist training based on the needs of its departments and participates in the development of the college’s educational programs. From the first year, students spend one day per week studying at Metro facilities, and from the second year, they undergo internships in its specialized departments (over two thousand students since 2021). Annually, more than 100 employees of the Moscow Metro are involved in the certification of graduates.
Such close cooperation allows the college to graduate young specialists who are familiar with the work processes and equipment of their future workplace. In turn, the metro receives highly qualified personnel for existing and new projects. Since the start of the joint project, more than 1,200 graduates of the Moscow Transport College have been employed and are successfully working in the metro.
In addition, among the key partners of the educational institution are Russian Railways (RZD), the Central Suburban Passenger Company, Mosgortrans, the Metrovagonmash-Service holding, Moslift, and the Karacharovsky Mechanical Plant. Employees of these enterprises participate in the development of educational programs, conducting laboratory and practical classes, qualification exams, and the state final certification. Students regularly attend employer master classes, offsite excursions to Moscow transport facilities, and other corporate events organized by partners.
In recent years, interest in studying at the Moscow Transport College has grown significantly. In 2026, it enrolled over 1,600 freshmen — twice as many as in 2023.
The college hosts a career center (graduate employment assistance center) and the training center “Academy of Professional Qualifications,” which, in particular, serves as a venue for a city project for schoolchildren. “Professional Training Without Borders”.
Based on the results of the 2025/2026 academic year, the college became a laureate of the Mayor of Moscow’s III degree grant in the field of education.
Among the notable alumni of the educational institution is Sofya Dorofeeva, who in 2022 became the first woman to be an electric train driver on the Moscow Railway, and in 2025 became the first woman authorized to operate the high-speed “Sapsan” train. She is currently working as an assistant driver in the Northwestern High-Speed Communication Directorate, a branch of JSC “Russian Railways,” operating the high-speed trains “Lastochka” and “Sapsan.”
Educational venue on Mikhalkovskaya Street
The building of the Moscow Transport College on Mikhalkovskaya Street, with an area of over 15,000 square meters, is a unique educational space with innovative zones that provide conditions as close as possible to those existing in real enterprises.
In particular, in 2026, the following were opened here:
— an electrical equipment training ground for power plants and substations (161.3 square meters), where one can acquire professional skills necessary to work at the traction substation of the Moscow Metro. The unique power engineering equipment helps students master a wide range of competencies — from handling electrical circuits and managing the operating modes of power supply devices and relay protection to diagnostics, maintenance, testing, and repair;
— a test site for vertical transport and lifting mechanisms (139 square meters), equipped with a functioning elevator with a shaft, four elevator cabins, a floor escalator, and winch mechanisms. Here, students master the full cycle of working with elevator equipment — from checking the technical condition and adjustment to troubleshooting and repair. They learn to handle mechanical, electrical, and electronic elevator systems, practice assembling and disassembling its components, as well as safe evacuation of passengers from the cabin. At the same time, the site hosts the Qualifications Assessment Center of the Russian Off-Street Transport Employers’ Association, which is the main venue for conducting the practical part of qualification exams in the field of vertical transport.
In addition, in the 2025/2026 academic year, modern training complexes for train driver preparation were put into operation, featuring 3D route visualization up to 380 kilometers, simulation of normal, emergency and unusual situations, safety systems, and assessment of the student’s actions. A separate training complex for drivers was also created, with interactive 3D equipment models and 53 scenarios for practicing locomotive crew actions.
In addition to new testing grounds, the Moscow Transport College building on Mikhalkovskaya Street includes:
– electrical installation workshop (106.5 square meters). Each work area is equipped with an individual cabin, furnished with everything necessary for the complete cycle of work: installation, assembly, adjustment, and diagnostics of electrical circuits. Additionally, there are tools, measuring instruments, and personal protective equipment available;
— electrical engineering laboratory (106.5 square meters). Here, students program logic controllers and automation algorithms, configure relays and sensors, work with control and security systems, and perform diagnostics of electrical circuits and mechanical units;
— a rolling stock management laboratory (106.5 square meters) with interactive simulators where students practice practical skills in a format as close as possible to real conditions;
— laboratory of electrical machines and apparatuses (135 square meters) with models of electrical machines, apparatuses, and the tram line contact network, as well as specialized tram equipment;
— electrical equipment laboratory (136 square meters), equipped with 35-kilovolt high-voltage disconnectors with manual drives, on which operational switching skills are practiced;
— relay protection and automation laboratory (94.7 square meters). Here they study the design and operating principles of protections, assemble secondary switching circuits, simulate emergency processes in the power system, test relay protection functions, assess their selectivity, and develop automation algorithms;
— a materials science laboratory (80 square meters), where students study conductors, semiconductors, dielectrics, and magnetic materials, investigating the effects of temperature and electric and magnetic fields on their properties.
The educational process is provided by 31 teachers and four industrial training masters. All of them have work experience in specialized enterprises. They have regularly undergone internships at the Moscow Metro. Every year, 40 active metro employees participate in student training.
Modernization of the system of secondary vocational education
“Seven innovative colleges will be built in Moscow in the coming years,” said the Mayor of Moscow.
Source: Sergey Sobyanin’s channel in the messenger “Max”
Currently, there are 170 colleges operating in the capital, including 73 private, 42 federal, and 55 colleges subordinate to the Moscow Government. They have 337,000 students enrolled, including 158,000 people (47 percent) in city colleges.
The number of students in urban colleges by industry is distributed as follows: information technology (IT) — 24.5 thousand, creative industries — 22.5 thousand, industry — 20.1 thousand, transport — 16.5 thousand, construction — 15.8 thousand, healthcare — 14.1 thousand, hospitality — 14 thousand, education and social services — 13.2 thousand, security and law — 9.8 thousand, finance and trade — 7.9 thousand.
The employment rate of graduates from urban colleges is 94 percent.
This year, 58 thousand first-year students enrolled in educational institutions, including over 41 thousand graduates of the ninth grades of Moscow schools, which is more than 10 percent higher than the figure for 2025.
Since 2023, Government of Moscow has been consistently building a modern system for training professional personnel. This is not piecemeal change, but a comprehensive transformation of the industry. Among the key directions are constant alignment with employers, updating curricula based on the current demands of the economy and specialized enterprises, and modernization of college infrastructure to meet the requirements of the new educational process standard.
Today, a wide pool of partners has been formed with whom long-term relationships have been established. There are more than 3,800 employers in total. These include large industrial enterprises, construction and transport organizations, gastronomic holdings, IT companies, professional communities, and others.
Together with experts from various industries, profiles of specialists have been created who progressively develop professional competencies during their studies and are ready for independent work at enterprises upon graduation. Based on these profiles, new educational programs, workshop equipment standards, as well as assignments for intermediate and final assessments were developed. Skills testing now closely reflects real production tasks. At the same time, career guidance work with schoolchildren is organized so that even before enrollment, they can see their future development and make a more informed choice of profession.
Currently, all educational programs have been revised in full compliance with the latest industry technologies and production processes. The emphasis has significantly shifted towards practice: students acquire skills that can be immediately applied in the workplace. Additionally, a system of regular program updates has been implemented, allowing for the prompt incorporation of emerging modern technologies, advanced industry knowledge, and changing labor market demands.
Today, about 70 percent of students’ learning time is devoted to practical exercises and skill development, which will enable graduates to immediately engage in real tasks at the city’s industrial enterprises.
Over nine thousand college students in Moscow have undergone training at practical training sitesMore than a thousand students chose targeted training at colleges in Moscow this year
To improve the quality of practice, production training masters from specialized enterprises and organizations are involved.
A key direction for the development of teachers and instructors in secondary vocational education is to improve their mastery of the profession whose knowledge they pass on to students. This training takes place in two formats. There are so-called master schools, created jointly with leading employers of various industries (“Kofemania,” Sber, “Yandex,” “Rostec,” JSC “Moscow Automobile Plant ‘Moskvich’,” PJSC “Yakovlev,” and others), the purpose of which is to ensure the acquisition of relevant skills and modern technologies, as well as obtaining knowledge and competencies for the implementation of updated secondary vocational education programs. To date, 70 percent of instructors and teachers have been trained in modern professional skills and technologies, and by the end of 2027, this figure will grow to 100 percent;
In addition, there are short-term internships for production training masters and teachers of professional subjects/modules. Every year, more than three thousand people complete them at the sites of enterprises — industrial partners.
The practice of targeted education is also expanding, primarily in priority sectors of the economy. Targeted contracts tie the student — a future employee — to an enterprise, while giving the student a guarantee of employment with a reliable employer. This is an opportunity to ensure a seamless transition from the status of a college student to the role of a full-fledged employee. In the 2025/2026 academic year, almost 3.5 thousand students were being trained under targeted education contracts.
The leader in the number of target places is the industrial sector, which accounts for more than three thousand contracts. The most active partners in this area last year were the state corporation Rostec, JSC Mosoblenergo, and PJSC Rosseti.
In the 2026/2027 academic year, targeted contracts will be concluded in the industrial sector with enterprises of Rostec, as well as with new partners — companies of the state corporation Roscosmos: JSC “VNIEM Corporation”, JSC “NPCAP”, and JSC “MIT Corporation”. In addition, applications have been received for the following additional specialties: “Industrial Design” and “Installation, Maintenance, and Repair of Biomedical Equipment and Systems” — from LLC “Konmet”, “Pharmacy” — from PJSC “Pharmacy Network 36.6”, and “Additive Technologies” — from JSC “Research Institute of Technological Processes”. The practice of targeted training is being expanded by JSC “MMZ Avangard” (part of JSC “Almaz-Antey Air and Space Defense Concern”) and LLC “Aeroflot Technics”. In total, more than 600 applications for contracts with students have been submitted.
Among the key partners in the transportation sector are the state unitary enterprise “Moscow Metro,” JSC “Rolf,” LLC “SP Business Car,” and LLC “Autoretail M,” including new partner organizations — JSC “Central PPK” and JSC “Transmashholding.” A targeted direction in the hospitality industry is actively developing with major chains of image laboratories and beauty salons “Mone,” “Persona,” “Palchiki,” and “Capsula,” and in the food industry — with the restaurant house Maison Dellos.
An important direction in the modernization of secondary vocational education in Moscow is the large-scale re-equipment of colleges. From 2023 to 2026, nearly 1,700 workshops and laboratories were re-equipped, and by the end of 2027, there will be about 2,050 of them.
In addition, four flagship practical training centers have been established next to modern productions, where over 20,000 people will be able to study annually. The first one, located in the Rudnevo industrial park, was opened in October 2024.
In 2025, on the territory special economic zone The “Technopolis Moscow” in Pechatniki has opened the “Professions of the Future” center and a practical training center for mechanical engineering, where over 16,500 adults and college students can study annually. Another center called “Sever” is designed to train about a thousand people each year.
The “Professions of the Future” Center in Pechatniki invites you to short training programs in OctoberIndustrial specialties in Moscow colleges are gaining popularity among applicantsHow the capital prepares personnel for the metallurgical industry
Projects are also being implemented to create seven innovative colleges with a total area of over 400,000 square meters to accommodate approximately 60,000 students. These educational institutions will train personnel for the creative industries, IT, healthcare, hospitality, industry, transportation, construction, and other sectors.
In addition, the building of the Moscow Technological College named after I.A. Likhachev and the Moscow College of Management, Hospitality and Information Technology “Tsaritsyno” are undergoing major renovations—three buildings in total with an area of about 50,000 square meters.
The complete overhaul of the urban colleges’ infrastructure is planned to be finished by the end of 2031.
Development of educational and production complexes
By order of Sergey Sobyanin, starting from 2025, training and production complexes (TPC) are being established in colleges based on modernized workshops and laboratories, which not only provide practical training for students but also create additional sources of funding for educational institutions.
Currently, there are 22 UPTs in operation, meaning they are open in almost every second college under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Government. Employed students, under the guidance of experienced masters, improve their professional skills, participate in social projects, and produce in-demand products under the brand “Made by Moscow Colleges.”
Since the beginning of 2026, students have produced over 20,000 items, including:
— elements of urban infrastructure (commissioned by the Moscow city management complex): benches, container sites, concrete spheres, and information banners;
— furniture and decor for schools: adjustable desks and chairs, poufs, benches, tables, stands, shelving units, pedestals, cabinets, podiums, sports mats, as well as branded stained glass and patterns for wrapping the entrance area;
— designer textiles, souvenirs, printed materials, household goods, toys, books (including “Tolstoy’s Diaries” featuring quotes from the great Russian writer), the “Classics about Moscow” collection (accessories and interior items with images and quotes from Leo Tolstoy, Anton Chekhov, Alexander Pushkin, and other authors, as well as a book of the same name with vintage photographs of the capital and writers’ remarks about Moscow);
— decorations for children’s polyclinics: in 2025, students of the I.A. Likhachev Moscow Technological College created special New Year’s installations (nutcrackers, locomotives, drums, and horses).
Goods produced in the educational and production complexes of Moscow colleges were showcased at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, the Colleges Forum at Gostiny Dvor, the All-Russian Forum of Veterans of the Special Military Operation “Together We Will Win” on Vorobyovy Gory, the International Youth Festival in Yekaterinburg, and the International Film Festival “Antares,” as well as in five art pavilions “Made in Moscow” at the venues of the “Summer in Moscow” project.
Students’ products from Moscow colleges were presented at major youth platforms across the countryMore than 20 thousand products were created by students of Moscow colleges under their own brand this year
Since 2025, on the Vorobyovy Gory in the Moscow Palace of Pioneers, the first student restaurant “Meeting of Friends” has been very popular, where students of Moscow colleges work as cooks, bakers, confectioners, baristas, and waiters, administrators and hostess, combining training with practice.
By the end of 2026, it is planned to open an online store of the brand ‘Made by Moscow Colleges,’ sales points in the ‘Iciti’ business center, and 10 stores in the capital’s colleges. It will also be possible to get acquainted with the assortment and purchase products of the brand at the venues of the ‘Winter in Moscow’ project.
Subscribe to Sergey Sobyanin’s official channels on messengers “Max” and “Telegram”.
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