It’s (not) a match! How doctoral students in Russia experience the gap between expectations and reality

Innovations in Education and Teaching International. 2025.

Smirnov N., Rakov N.

This study investigates mismatches between doctoral students’ expectations and experiences, conceptualising the doctorate as a liminal and often opaque educational space. Using survey data from 1,373 doctoral students across 157 universities in Russia, we employ Latent Class Analysis to identify five distinct expectation-reality profiles. While many students report alignment, a substantial proportion experience unmet expectations or encounter unanticipated challenges – particularly in workload, academic support, and social integration. These mismatches correlate with lower satisfaction and reduced confidence in completing the dissertation. Differences are shaped by institutional type, disciplinary field, and educational trajectory, with students from leading universities and non-linear academic paths being especially at risk. The findings highlight the importance of managing expectations through transparent admissions processes, pre-enrolment orientation, and ongoing institutional support. By offering a typology of (mis)match experiences, this study contributes to innovation in doctoral education design and provides actionable insights for enhancing student engagement, retention, and well-being.

Keywords: аспирантура, latent class analysis, латентный классовый анализ, удовлетворенность обучением, doctoral education in Russia, научное руководство аспирантами, отсев в аспирантуре, doctoral education, expectation-reality mismatch, academic satisfaction, doctoral attrition, несовпадение ожиданий и реальности

Publication based on the results of: Трансформация аспирантуры в Китае и России (2026)