The Sirius Centre’s educational programme serves the goals of the Talent and Success Educational Foundation: early identification, development and further professional support of gifted children who have shown outstanding abilities in the arts, sport and natural sciences, or have succeeded in technical creativity.
“Everything on earth changes, everything is fleeting; and of all that blooms and lives on earth, man is the most fleeting of all…” (The Odyssey, 1:40–42).
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The history of the Sirius Educational Centre began with the establishment of the Talent and Success Educational Foundation in December 2014. Its goals are to identify talented children from all over the country, provide them with advanced training in natural sciences, arts, sports and technical creativity, and support them further on.
The Centre was founded in 2015 on the initiative of Russian President Vladimir Putin on the site of the Olympic cluster. Today it runs intensive specialised programmes for schoolchildren aged 7 to 18 from all over the country. Sirius involves students in project work and technical creativity, hosts school and final stages of the All-Russian School Olympiad in its core subjects and provides mass online learning in advanced programmes. Teachers also regularly upgrade their skills here, learning the latest teaching approaches from outstanding experts in science, arts and sport — in practice, including at classes for schoolchildren attending Sirius programmes.
In September 2024 the Sirius Specialised Music School opened, offering primary and secondary vocational education in music performance. Today 76 children from grades 1 to 10 study there.
The Centre’s educational opportunities are available not only to participants of its programmes but to all residents and guests of the federal territory — through open programmes and infrastructure, the introduction of its practices into school teaching, and joint programmes with the Presidential Lyceum, the Multidisciplinary Gymnasium and the University of Science and Technology.
The Sirius Educational Centre runs intensive specialised programmes in which schoolchildren hone their skills in science, arts, sport and technical creativity under the guidance of leading experts. Each programme lasts 24 days and includes classes with teachers from leading universities and schools, cultural and sports centres, research organisations, top experts and coaches. Programmes are led by outstanding Russian scientists, specialists and experienced teachers, and every year more of the teachers are themselves alumni of the Centre.
Children enrolled in the programmes receive free travel, accommodation and six meals a day, and can attend lectures, meetings, master classes, excursions, concerts and sports events at venues across the Sirius Federal Territory and partner sites.
Programmes in this area are linked to Russia’s scientific and technological development and are open to students in grades 6–11. Each includes classes with lecturers from leading universities, specialised physics-and-mathematics and chemistry-and-biology schools, and science and technology entrepreneurs.
The programmes have different selection rules but form a single structure that allows every talented student to build their own development path. They are regularly updated: in recent years new programmes have been launched in biology and genetics, chemistry, applied mathematics (a project programme in mathematics and theoretical computer science), thermodynamics and artificial intelligence.
About a thousand teachers from leading schools, supplementary education organisations and universities, as well as scientists, engineers and industry experts teach on the programmes, including specialists from Rosatom, RusHydro, Sber, Gazprom Neft, Biocad, R-Pharm, Yandex, T-Bank, VK and others.
A science and technology project programme that develops skills and immerses schoolchildren in research and engineering project work. Selection is through the Big Challenges science and technology project competition, in which participants develop and implement their own projects. In 2026 the competition received a record number of applications — about 20,000.
In the 2023–2024 academic year a new strategic track, “Ecology and Climate Change Studies”, was added. In its very first year it became the second most popular, with more than 1,800 projects submitted, and it remains among the leaders: almost 3,000 applications were received in 2026.
In 2026 the competition became international, with applicants from nine countries. Students from Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan reached the final.
For the first time, in-person project defences in all 11 tracks of the competition — covering the key areas of Russia’s scientific and technological development — took place on the federal territory. About 1,500 finalists presented their work to scientists and representatives of leading Russian companies and research institutes. Schoolchildren from Kazakhstan came for the first time, having earlier presented their projects at the national final held as part of the II Talent Summit for Children and Youth in Astana.
Big Challenges also brings together students from Kazakhstan, Belarus, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Abkhazia, Hungary, Moldova and Kyrgyzstan.
The Centre’s programmes and events also support and develop teachers, helping to build educational ecosystems in the regions that give children and young people every opportunity to fulfil their potential.
Professional development programmes are free for teachers and run with the Association of Sirius Partner Schools and expert organisations, including sports federations. Teachers learn the Foundation’s best practices, study methods of working with talented children and learn how to engage and motivate students. After the programme they receive ongoing remote support throughout the school year.
For students of non-teaching specialities the Foundation runs the Talent Development Pedagogy retraining programme.
Information as of 1 June 2026.