On November 1, 1773, Empress Catherine II, embodying the ideas of Peter I and M.V. Lomonosov about training engineering personnel for the mining industry, signed a decree to establish an engineering school for mining. This date became the birthday not only of the Mining University but also of all higher technical education in Russia.

Initially, the Mining School was located in two houses purchased from Count P.B. Sheremetev, at the corner of the 22nd line of Vasilievsky Island and the Neva embankment.

Key stages in the development of the university:

From 1773 to 1803, the Mining School trained highly qualified specialists for the mining industry. M.F. Soimonov, the first director of the school, played a significant role in its establishment. The first students, enrolled on June 28, 1774, came from Moscow University and the chemical laboratory of the Berg College. By 1776, the first group of mining officers had graduated. By the end of the 18th century, 108 students were studying at the school, for whom practical conditions were created: a 'model mine', laboratories, and smelting furnaces. Exams were held every six months in the presence of members of the Berg College and scholars. Students wore parade uniforms: a scarlet coat with a white collar and gold epaulettes.

From 1804 to 1833, the school became the Mining Cadet Corps, and then the Institute of the Corps of Mining Engineers (1834-1866). It was a closed educational institution resembling military cadet corps. Since 1806, the corps had university status. In 1804, construction of a new complex of buildings began, designed by A.N. Voronikhin. By 1811, an architectural ensemble with a twelve-column portico and sculptures appeared on the embankment. By 1816, 335 cadets were studying in the corps, and by 1824, more than 500. In 1817, the All-Russian Mineralogical Society was founded, and in 1818, a combined museum. In 1825, the 'Mining Journal' was established.

From 1866 to 1917, the institute became an open higher educational institution, where mining and general theoretical disciplines were studied. In 1896, it was renamed the Mining Institute of Empress Catherine II. In the early 20th century, a subject-based education system was introduced, extending the duration of study at the institute to seven years.

From 1917 to 1945, the institute became the Petrograd, and then the Leningrad Mining Institute (LGI), training highly qualified personnel for geology and metallurgy. In 1933, LGI developed a technology for processing sulfide copper-nickel ores. During the war years, the institute produced explosives and grenades, and students participated in partisan units.

In the post-war years, the institute increased the graduation of specialists, and in the 1960s began training engineers through evening and correspondence systems. By the early 21st century, the number of engineering graduates exceeded 40,000. Among the alumni are 36 academicians and 24 corresponding members of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

For its contributions to training personnel and developing science, the institute was awarded the highest honors: the Order of Lenin, the Order of the Red Banner of Labor, and the Order of the October Revolution. In recent decades, the university has undergone a complete reconstruction of its facilities and infrastructure, remaining true to its motto: 'diligence in the service of the Fatherland and love for its benefit.'