On February 12, 2026, Stanislav Prokofiev, Rector of the Financial University, participated in the session titled “The Internship Institute in Public Service: A Step Toward a Managed Model for Talent Development,” held as part of the International Congress on Public Administration at the Presidential Academy.
Participants in the discussion focused on strengthening the talent pool in government agencies and attracting young professionals to the civil service system. Special attention was given to the legal framework governing internships—recognized as one of the most effective tools—with experts calling for improvements to its regulatory base.
“Internships benefit all parties involved: organizations gain competent, motivated employees who are well-adapted to corporate culture; students get their dream job; and universities secure worthy employment outcomes for their graduates,” emphasized Stanislav Prokofiev.
Alexander Machevsky, Executive Director of the “Dom” unit at state corporation VEB.RF and moderator of the event, noted that the Financial University is a key provider of interns for the company. He highlighted that many interns later receive full-time employment offers from VEB.
In his speech, Stanislav Prokofiev shared the Financial University’s experience in developing the internship institute, spotlighting an exclusive internship program created jointly with the Russian Ministry of Finance. He announced plans to scale up this project by year-end and to launch similar internship programs with the Federal Treasury and the Federal Tax Service, extending opportunities to students from other universities as well. He also discussed the Financial University’s involvement in the Ministry of Science and Higher Education’s initiative, “Russian Civil Service Intern,” and other efforts to promote careers in civil service among young people.
During the discussion, Yaroslav Nilov, Chair of the State Duma Committee on Labor, Social Policy, and Veterans’ Affairs, reported that following a meeting of the State Council on workforce preparation for the national economy, President Vladimir Putin issued a directive to amend legislation to formally recognize internships as a type of labor relationship, and to define the terms “intern” and “employment through internships.”
The expert panel also included Ayrat Gatiyatov, Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education; Andrey Khazin, Rector of the Russian State Social University; Ilya Serebrennikov, a graduate of the first season of the “Russian Civil Service Intern” project and consultant for the Department of State Procurement at the Ministry of Science and Higher Education; and Violetta Gavrilova, a graduate of the third season of the project and senior consultant in the Department of Information Policy and Integrated Security at the Ministry of Science and Higher Education.
