Differentiations in Educational Services in Urban and Rural Areas in the Republic of Bashkortostan (Russia)

In this article, we focused on the importance of education in the socio-economic development of the country. We analyzed the government statistics of the Russian Federation, the experience of other countries, and the scholarship of Russian and foreign researchers. Based on this analysis, we established the basic differences in the level of educational service in the rural and urban areas of the Republic of Bashkortostan. We concluded that even though the government objective is to increase the birth rate and keep young professional workers in rural areas, the number of pre-school educational institutions in rural areas is declining, and the infrastructure of rural pre-school education lags behind the urban one. The difference in education quality of rural and urban schools creates unfavorable conditions for rural university applicants. The dire state of rural education increases the rate of rural flight. Young people move from rural areas to the cities of Bashkortostan, other regions (especially to Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and Kazan), and other countries. This contributes to brain drain and creates serious issues in the socio-economic development of rural areas of Bashkortostan.