Peoples' Friendship University (PFU) was founded on 5 February, 1960 by the USSR Government. On 22 February, 1961, the University was named after Patrice Lumumba — one of the symbols of the African peoples' fight for independence. The University's name was changed to the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia on 5 February, 1992 by the Government of the Russian Federation, which is considered as the University's founder. Peoples' Friendship University of Russia is an international classic university.


It is charged with the following mission:
Uniting people of different nations, races and religions by means of knowledge;
Training qualified specialists in various spheres of activity;
Forming personalities, who love their native countries and are friends of Russia;
who are familiar with the achievements of world culture;
who boost the ideals of humanism, democracy and peoples' friendship;

Training young people, capable of working in any country of the world and using their creativity in the context of interconnection of civilizations and diversity of modern society. The 1990's saw the creation of new faculties and Institutes: Ecological faculty, faculty of Economics, faculty of Law, Philological faculty, faculty of Humanities and social sciences, faculty of Refresher training for health care professionals, Institute of Foreign languages, Institute of Distance learning, Institute of Hospitality business and tourism, Institute of Gravitation and cosmology. The University also developed systems of pre-university and further professional education. 2006 was marked by a 50000th diploma of PFUR, received by Jose Atinensia Villagomez, Engineering faculty graduate from Ecuador.
Today Peoples' Friendship University of Russia is one of the leading state higher educational institutions of Russia. It is the only university in the world every year uniting students from 147 countries. The University has a multiprofile structure of faculties and majors, typical for classical universities of the world. More than 77 thousand graduates of the University work in 170 countries, among them more than 5500 holders of PhD and Doctorate degrees. Specialists are prepared in 62 majors and lines of study. More than 29 thousand graduate and postgraduate students from 147 countries are currently studying at the university. They represent more than 450 nations and nationalities of the world.

Peoples' Friendship University of Russia is a large scientific center generating new ideas. During the years of its existence it has brought up a lot of eminent scientists and scholars in natural, engineering, medical-biological, socio-economic and humanitarian sciences. The University is proud of 400 professors and holders of Doctorate degree, 900 associate professors and holders of PhD degree. The University participates in research, design and experimental projects in priority fields of science and technology in close cooperation with leading Russian and foreign universities as well as with academic and branch research institutes. Every year more than 400 Doctorate and PhD dissertations are defended at University, scientists register patents for their discoveries.

The Peoples' Friendship University of Russia maintains its international activity at a high level. It has signed around 170 joint cooperation documents (agreements and other accords) worldwide and already introduced 108 joint degree programs with universities around the world. One of the factors, which have contributed to that, is the implementation of the ECTS credit system at the university. Being the experimental institution for Bologna principles implementation the University has established a Quality assurance department and is actively involving the students in the university governance system.

The University is a member of international associations, unions and organizations operating in the field of education, among them the International University Association (IUA), European University Association (EUA), European Association for International Education (EAIE), Reseau n+i Engineering Institute, Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF), Programme on Institutional Management in Higher Education (IMHE) and others. PFUR actively cooperates with the Council of Europe in implementation of the Bologna principles; it organized joint projects with the Office of the United Nations Higher Commissioner for Human Rights and participates in the European Training Foundation programs. According to the results of the Interfax News Agency National Rankings 2012/2013 the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia took the first place on the level of international activity development (internationalization) among classical, Federal and National Research Universities in Russia.