Opinion

In Russia, a failed university exam can send you to war

In a closed Telegram chat for parents of students at Bauman Moscow State Technical University (the Russian analog of MIT), a mother shares her son's story. The young man failed one exam before the qualification commission and was unable to take an academic leave. After that, the only thing left for him was the risk of losing his student status and being drafted into the army. At the military enlistment office on Yablochkov Street in Russia's capital, the medical examination lasted seven hours