Pacific National University

The Pacific National University (PNU) is a public university in Khabarovsk, Russia, established in 1958. PNU has over 12,000 students in 80 various academic majors.

Yuriy S. Marfin, the rector of the Pacific National University

History
The Pacific National University (PNU) started as the Khabarovsk Automobile Highway Institute, founded by the USSR Ministry of Higher Education on March 29, 1958. M. P. Danilovsky served as president for the following 30 years. The initial enrollment was approximately 150 students. The institute offered majors in industrial, highway and civil engineering, motor transport, construction, and highway machines and equipment.

By 1962, the institute had departments of engineering, mechanical engineering, automobile engineering, highway engineering, and forest engineering, totaling five departments. Students were trained in 10 majors. By that time the enrollment increased to 1150 students. On July 12, 1962, the Khabarovsk Automobile Highway Institute was renamed the Khabarovsk Poly-technical Institute. The first engineering students graduated in 1963.

In 1967, the construction of campus buildings was finished. The university trained engineering students in 18 majors. In 1975, a branch of the Institute was founded in Magadan, Russia.

In December 1992, Khabarovsk Poly-technical Institute became Khabarovsk State University of Technology. On March 23, 2005, Khabarovsk State University became Pacific National University.

Current structure
As of 2021, Pacific National University (PNU) had eight institutes. These are the Far East Highway Institute, the Far East Institute of Forest Industry, the Far East Law Institute, the Institute of Architecture and Civil Engineering, the Institute of Information Technologies, the Institute of Automotive and Power Engineering, the Institute of Economics and Management and the Far Eastern Institute of Branch Technologies, Management, Business and Law (Department for Extension and Parallel Training; Extra-Mural Department for Extension Training; Department for Further Professional Training). PNU also has three departments. These are the International Studies Department, the Department of Mathematical Modelling and Control Processes and the Extra-Mural Department.

In November 2009, PNU had over 21,000 students in 61 majors of basic higher professional education, 32 Bachelor's degree programs, 26 Master's degree programs, and 40 scientific majors of postgraduate education. There were 900 faculty members at PNU, including 102 full professors and over 426 associate professors.

Research activities
More than 20 internationally recognized scientific schools have been established at Pacific National University (PNU). PNU scientific researches are carried out in physical and mathematical sciences, including theoretical nuclear physics, information and telecommunication technologies, nanotechnologies, materials science, mechanical engineering, architecture and urban planning, sociology, economics, and jurisprudence.

Applied Research Fields
The main fields of applied research are the following: Measuring, Calculation and Control Devices; Information Processing Systems; Computer-Based Information Systems Design; Development of Robot Systems, including Submerged Robotics; Applied Materials Science; Improvement of Technological Processes and Machines and Mechanisms Engineering; Improving the Efficiency of Transportation Using and Improvement of its Operating Characteristics; Engineering of Logging Technologies and Timber Processing; Problems of Sustainable Use of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection; Forest Reserve Restoration; Alternative Energy Sources Generation; Design of Industrial and Civil Buildings and Constructions; Development of Modern Construction Technologies and Operation of Transport Facilities.

Activity
Annually more than 600 scientific papers that cover the results of Pacific National University scientific research are published in Russian and foreign journals and paper collections of international conferences.

There are more than 20 laboratories, more than 20 Scientific-Educational and Engineering Centers and 2 students’ Design Engineering Bureaus at PNU.

The university's teams of researchers participate in various competitions for conducting research within the framework of the Federal Target Programs, Scientific and Technical Programs, Grants in different scientific fields (grants and programs of Federal Agency for Education and Federal Agency for Science and Innovation, The Russian Foundation for Basic Research).

Annually research projects of PNU scientists are presented at International Scientific and Technical Exhibitions, including the Moscow International Salon of Innovations and Investments, International Exhibition & Congress “High Technologies. Innovation. Investments” (St. Petersburg), Moscow International Salon of Industrial Property “Archimedes” (Moscow). Annually, PNU staff and teams of researchers have received more than 50 patents and certificates of registration of computer programs. In total, PNU scientists submitted 298 inventions and utility models for patenting and obtained 259 patents between 2000 and 2008.

PNU has established a number of subdivisions: Innovation and Technology Center, Technology Transfer Center in Khabarovsky krai, Impulse Center, Nonprofit Partnership “Far Eastern Technology Transfer Center,” and the Students’ Business Incubator.

Doctoral and PhD Studies
The Pacific National University PhD degree program is conducted in 40 majors, including five majors introduced in 2007 -2008. PNU Doctorate degree program is conducted in 7 majors.

There are 6 dissertation councils at PNU, which work in 11 majors. The university is a co-founder of four joint dissertation councils.

Every year over 3,000 students participate in student research work (SRW) events.

Information technology
Pacific National University has a modern information and education complex that includes:
 * Local university interior network
 * External distributed network
 * Automated control system of the education process
 * Automated control system of the university
 * Electronic documentation system
 * Informational - library complex

There are 2200 computers and 40 computerized classrooms at PNU, where practical training in information technologies majors are conducted. More than 1,750 computers are connected to the LAN. 40 servers and 110 units of network equipment are a constituent part of the united network.

Internet system of distance learning is developing. There is developed and successfully applied the technology of operative creation of electronic textbooks and courses of lectures in chm, DjVu, PDF formats. Today, more than 3500 students of Extra-Mural Department and Extra-Mural Department for Extension Training use the data portal and AST-3 system in educational process.

Pacific National University is actively involved in the informational process of the educational system at the regional level. In addition, the PNU communication center provides management and technical support to the telecommunication industry network of science and higher education institutions of Khabarovsky krai and provides functioning of Khabarovsk Regional Educational Information Network (KREIN). There was designed portal Paydeyya at PNU to form a regional educational content and create Internet sites for the regional educational telecommunication projects.

The journal Information Science and Control Systems is published with the assistance of PNU scientists. In October 2009, the analytical survey “Apply of Automated Control Systems to Institutions of Higher Professional Education activities in Russian Federation” was prepared in the State Institute of Information Technologies and Telecommunications "Informika" on the basis of research of automated control systems (ACS) in 673 Russian state and municipal institutions of higher education.

Pacific National University became one of the 55 best Russian institutions of higher education that received the highest scores in all examined ACS areas.

Scientific Library
The PNU Scientific Library is the Regional Methodical Centre for 94 state and commercial libraries of institutions of higher education and specialized secondary educational institutions in Khabarovsky krai and Amur Oblast. There are about 1.6 million volumes; about 1 million documents, including electronic ones. Annually the library serves over 22,000 readers; 700,000 attend the library (including the website) per year. The overall University Network consists of 4 information centers, operates a local network which contains 113, 56 Sun computer terminals, 10 touch screen kiosks and 5 servers PCs, situated in the library, and has Internet access.

Publishing
Publishing activity is carried out by Pacific National University Publishing House, which was established in 1993. It consists of three sections: editorial, computer-generated, operative printing quality. The main purpose of PNU publishing activity is to provide scientific and educational process at the University through high-quality competitive publishing and printing products. Annually PNU Publishing House issues 10-12 monographs; 20-30 collection of scientific works; 35–45 titles of learning aids and textbooks; 120-150 titles of instructor's manual for all types of training courses and students' self-training; 20-40 thesis abstracts; 30-40 titles of earlier issued printings (reissue), etc. PNU Publishing House is a member of the Publishing-Polygraphic Association of Universities of Russia since 2006.

International Cooperation
PNU maintains international relationship with more than 120 foreign partners from 21 countries (at 68 universities). The most contracts were signed with countries of Russia's Far East Near Abroad - countries of the Asia-Pacific region, and especially the bordering countries - the People's Republic of China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Korean Democratic People's Republic.

According to long-term programs of international cooperation the University carries out activities in academic and students’ exchange, joint research, innovation and technological, educational, cultural and business projects. PNU also trains international students and international Ph.D. students and send Russian students for training abroad.

PNU has realized and is realizing the following international research and educational projects.
 * Established the Russian-German Institute of Information and Computer Sciences at PNU in cooperation with Saarland University (Germany).
 * Established the Laboratory high-precision measuring equipment named after Hideo Otsubo, PNU Honorary Dr. at PNU in cooperation with “Tokyo Seimitsu Co. Ltd” (Japan).

Annually PNU trains more than 400 international students. More than 1600 international students, Master's students, Ph.D. students, and interns studied at PNU between 1989 and 2009 (80 percent of them are citizens of China).