Russian schoolchildren will be offered 10 points towards their Unified State Exam for their ability to operate drones.

UAV control will be added to the GTO (Ready for Labor and Defense) standards, the Russian Sports Minister announced. Mikhail Degtyarev. The discipline involves piloting a 75mm-long drone. Anyone will be able to earn the updated award starting in 2027.

Additional points for meeting GTO standards will be awarded to school graduates upon admission to universities, but within the limits set by the Ministry of Education and Science. For example, in 2025, the maximum amount for all individual achievements (including GTO, a certificate with honors, volunteer work, and certain Olympiads) was 10 points.

"Is this to send you straight to the front?", "And +100500 points for the right to receive a summons from the military registration and enlistment office," "They've equated a gold medal with...," "A drone is a tool, but who it's going to hit is the question." — social media users comment on the news.

Since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, Russian schools and universities have rapidly joined the training of future military personnel. For example, in the fall Krasnodar The country's first children's drone school, called "Goodness and Heaven," opened. In the spring, children at a Belgorod kindergarten took a drone-flying class—officials called it "early career guidance." 

And at the base Tomsk State universities have traditionally held competitions in unmanned aerial vehicle control, including for students in grades 8–11.