Irkutsk State University was founded in 1918 in Irkutsk, Russia. It currently has over 10 faculties and educational institutions across 2 branches educating over 18,000 students, including 300 international students from 27 countries. The university focuses on research through 7 dissertation councils and 8 academic units covering fields like astronomy, social sciences, botany, Mongolia studies, applied physics, and biology. Famous Russian writers Valentin Rasputin and Alexander Vampilov also studied at Irkutsk State University.