© picture alliance / Pacific Press | Aleksandr Gusev
Russia has been conducting a large-scale campaign for quite some time to recruit university and college students for its drone units. The role is presented as a short-term, well-paid, and relatively safe high-tech alternative to combat operations on the front lines. Yet many of these drone operators end up in frontline assault units, where they are killed after a short time.
The recruitment campaign, which has been underway since early 2026, targets students—especially those struggling academically—and offers financial incentives, academic benefits, and one-year contracts. Legal experts warn, however, that these contracts are effectively open-ended due to Russia’s current mobilization rules, and that recruits may not remain in the drone units.
In late February, the BBC found evidence that recruitment activities were taking place at at least 95 universities and colleges. In April, a Russian student magazine estimated that contracts for the drone units had been offered at nearly 270 universities and colleges.
Although drone roles are touted as safer, operators are highly valuable targets, and there have been significant casualties among them. According to estimates, there have been around 500,000 Russian military fatalities. On the Ukrainian side, the number of Ukrainian soldiers killed is estimated to be well over 200,000. Dutch intelligence services estimate the number of dead and wounded on the Ukrainian side at around 500,000.
The campaign targeting students emphasizes Russia’s need to replenish its armed forces and is drawing more and more young citizens into the conflict through educational institutions, often based on promises that turn out to be misleading or are not fulfilled.
Illustration picture: © picture alliance / Pacific Press | Aleksandr Gusev