They came to the European University in St. Petersburg with inspections

The prosecutor's office and Rosobrnadzor began an unscheduled inspection of the European University in St. Petersburg, the BBC Russian service reported. According to the publication’s sources, the departments requested personal files and individual scientific plans of undergraduate and graduate students from several faculties of the university for 2020–2023. In addition, the authorities are interested in the topics of dissertations, the content of scientific works and programs: “Inspectors are looking for extremism in the publications of teachers,” a source told the BBC.

A DOXA source at the university said that the reason for the investigation was a denunciation, and “the most attention, according to rumors, is paid to political scientists and historians.” The publication’s interlocutor suggests that the current inspection is being carried out “either for closure or for a change in management to a completely loyal one.” Another DOXA source, a university employee, confirms that “there was a denunciation,” but adds that its details are unknown, and the idea that the prosecutor’s office is looking for extremism in the professor’s publications is just speculation at the moment.

“All faculties are checked equally impartially, there is no increased attention to anyone, no one has asked for personal files of students. In fact, they simply check the compliance of the curricula and actual educational activities,” a university employee told DOXA.

The European University is a non-state university founded in 1994. It offers master's, postgraduate and additional education programs - mainly social and humanities disciplines are studied there. Over the past fifteen years, the university has been subject to repeated inspections and was closed twice.

In 2007, the university received a grant from the European Commission for a project to improve election monitoring in Russia; After criticism of the project from the Russian government, the Scientific Council terminated it. However, the fire inspectorate soon discovered violations at the university, after which it was closed for six weeks.

In 2016, after inspections by Rosobrnadzor, the court revoked the license of the European University; the license was issued again in 2017. During this year, the university was evicted from the building it previously occupied.