The article analyzes the reforms in higher education in the 1920s and 30s based on the experience of the Tomsk State University. It is in this period that the Soviet authorities, together with the faculty, searched for the optimal model of higher education. This included determining which professionals were necessary in an institute of higher education and what their training should be, as well as deciding on the organization, contents and length of university courses, the methodological foundations of education, and the examination system for students and young professionals. This resulted in a university system that was a blend of the pre-revolution Russian university tradition and the Soviet innovations introduced during this period.