Russian universities use "carrot and stick" tactics to pressure students into war
Echo describes the Russian methodology as 'the Carrot and Stick' (Photo: Photo by Oleksiy Vecherin from Рехеls)
70+ educational institutions across 24 Russian oblasts, including occupied Crimea, have been identified as active participants in a campaign to recruit students for contract military service in Ukraine, independent outlet Echo wrote on March 2.
The recruitment drive involves 57 universities and 13 technical colleges. However, the report suggested the actual number of participating institutions is likely much higher.
Some prestigious schools, namely, Plekhanov Russian University of Economics and the Far Eastern Federal University, have reportedly introduced internal quotas for the number of students they must convince to enlist.
The "Carrot and Stick" Methodology
Recruiters use a combination of financial incentives and institutional pressure to reach their targets:
The "Carrot": Students are promised substantial one-time payments — sometimes supplemented by the universities themselves — and high-tech roles in "unmanned systems forces." The service is framed as a "high-tech career" and an "academic leave," with the promise that students can return to their studies after one year.
The "Stick": Those with poor academic performance are frequently summoned to administrative offices where they are pressured to sign contracts as an alternative to expulsion. In some cases, students are threatened with sanctions for failing to attend mandatory meetings with military recruiters.
The report highlighted a growing culture of intimidation within these institutions. In Novosibirsk, the director of a transport college reportedly labeled students "cowards" during a screening of propaganda films intended to shame those who refused to volunteer.
Legal experts warned that the promise of a "guaranteed discharge" after one year is often a fiction, as the terms of service can be unilaterally extended under Russia's current mobilization laws.
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