History

A university with a more than a century-long history has gone through numerous changes and reformations reflecting different epochs of Russian history

Main historical campus building

In 1911 the house of the merchant Mr. Naumov on Bolshaya Pokrovskaya Street was rented (look for the house No. 33 on the city map now) for the needs of Nizhny Novgorod Teachers’ Institute. In September, 1914 Nizhny Novgorod Governor has confiscated the building for the needs of a hospital. The lessons took place elsewhere. In Naumov's house there were only a registry office, a library, physical and natural-historical offices left. In 1915 the teachers' board reconsidered the question of a special building for the Institute. An honorable trustee suggested the spare wine warehouse for these purposes and was even ready to take responsibility for that. However, in July the building that they liked was converted into a workshop on military equipment production. Up to 1921 the Institute still occupied two buildings on Bolshaya Pokrovskaya Street (houses No. 32 and 33) when the Nizhny Novgorod Government offered the building of the former men's gymnasium to the Instute which it is the resident of until now. In 1930s the gymnasium building was reconstructed: two floors were built over its sides (the former wings connected to the main building), and one more floor was built over the main building. It added up to the number of classrooms significantly. Also, the appearance of the building changed. As for the new building adjoining the old one (constructed in 1903), it remained unchanged. With the beginning of the Second World War the main building of the Institute was used as the Headquarters of the Moscow Military District and a hospital, and the Teachers Institute moved to the Agricultural College building, a former seminary. Later, the Institute returned to the building. The facade of the building was redesigned in 2015 for the first time.

October 30, 1911

Opening of Nizhny Novgorod Teacher Institute

In the post-reform years, demand for teaching staff in Russia was constantly growing. In the 70s of XIX century 9 teachers ‘colleges were opened in Russia, the first decade of the XX century has brought another 8 In 1911, teachers’ colleges were opened in a number of provincial cities, including Nizhny Novgorod.
Pupils (students) of the Institute were mostly represented by children of peasants. Thus, of the 29 people taken to the Institute for the second year of its existence, 20 were peasant children, 4 were of the middle class and 4 of the families of priests, with no nobles among the students. On January 1, 1914 all three classes of the Institute educated 81 students, 56 of which were previously taught in primary schools.
In July 1914, the first graduation took place with 28 students successfully finished their studies. After the first year working as a school teacher one of them wrote to the Director, «Many thanks to the Institute for teaching me how to persevere, to self-educate, and for a teacher — this is the most important.

1919–1921

Public education institute merger of pedagogical institute and teacher seminary

1921—1926

Nizhny Novgorod pedagogical institute the institute was transformed into higher educational institution, faculty of literature and history, faculty of physics and mathematics, faculty of science and geography were established

1926—1930

Pedagogical faculty of Nizhny Novgorod University with 5 departments: physics and mathematics, chemistry and biology, society and history, Russian language and literature, political enlightening work

1930—1993

Gorky State Pedagogical Institute

1993—2011

Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University (NSPU)

2011—2013

Minin State Pedagogical University of Nizhny Novgorod — Minin university merging with Volga State Engineering Pedagogical University

The new historical stage in the development of NSPU is associated with Volga State Engineering and Pedagogical University merging into it (NSPU being the oldest university in the region, VSEPU - the youngest of the state universities of the Nizhny Novgorod region). Two bodies — teachers and researchers on one side, under- and post- graduate students on the other — have teamed up to build a large modern educational organization of a new type, corresponding to the current stage of development of society and the education system.

September 7, 2011 by the decision of the Government of Nizhny Novgorod Region the University was named after Kozma Minin: Kozma Minin Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University — Minin University.

Currently, Minin Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University holds a legal status of a Federal State Educational Institution of Higher Professional Education of the Russian Federation, is licensed by the Federal Service for Supervision in Education and Science of the Russian Federation to conduct educational activities in the field of higher education, postgraduate and additional professional education.

Six faculties of Minin University educate more than 10,000 students in 26 fields of higher education and 2 fields of vocational education.

Rector of the University - Doctor of Philosophy, Professor Alexander Fedorov.

2013—2018

Educational Quality Platform

Establishing a «Project University» based on 12 strategic initiatives. Implementation of the concept of «supporting regional high school» as a «regional educational cluster».

since 2019

Open Educational Corporation

Open Educational Corporation will obtain the support regional University status of the cluster type implementing transregional network cooperation with leading universities and developing Teacher Education export in collaboration with foreign partner universities.
This will be an institution which carries out its social and educational practices within the network of open educational platform, evolved from the «Projec tUniversity» model to the «Open Educational Corporation».

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