The St. Petersburg I. I. Mechnikov State Medical Academy (SPSMA) is a public university located in St. Petersburg, Russian Federation. The SPSMA is one of the oldest and largest Russian Higher Medical Schools. Over its 100 years of history, the Academy remains a leading institution of Russia in medicine and training specialists in preventive and clinical medicine. It is often called the Second Medical College in St. Peters burg because of its re-naming in 1920 (see below), relative to Saint Petersburg State Medical University, which is called the First Medical College. The SPSMA has a long and proud tradition of educating Russian and international students. More than 35,000 physicians graduated from the Academy. Among the total student population of over 5,000, the Academy has around 1,000 international students from more than 30 countries worldwide. The SPSMA was established in 1907 under the direction of academician Vladimir Bekhterev and developed by the Russian Government through the Ministry of Health on the basis of the laws of Russian Federation.