Under the leadership of Pavel Nikolaevich Ignatiev, a major reform was being developed. The goal was a unified school system with continuity between levels of education. Governance was to become more flexible, with broader public participation. Teachers' conditions were to be improved. This was a transition from fragmented growth to a fully designed educational structure.
Higher education was expanding at the same time.
Between 1900 and 1917, 91 new universities were opened, including technical institutes in Saint Petersburg and Kiev. This priority was: engineering, industry, applied sciences. The system was preparing not just intellectual elites, but the workforce for a modern economy.
