The mission of ITMO involves generation of advanced knowledge, conducting and implementation of innovative research, and elite-level training of personnel, capable of operating in the rapidly changing world and ensuring the accelerated development of science, technology and other areas in order to assist the realization of the priority objectives.

Since the middle of XX century, University ITMO, using its own resources, as well as geoeconomic and intellectual resources of the St. Petersburg and the Russian Federation, is being developed as a center of education, science, innovation and high technologies on the principles of wide-range scientific research, intensive interaction with business community and transparency to international cooperation.

ITMO's scientific and technological potential lets talk about the leadership position of the University at the global level, in particular, in the field of ICT and photonics. Five times ITMO has been the absolute champion of the world in ACM-ICPC programming contest.

The strategic goal of ITMO is to achieve leading position within the global research and educational elite by conducting advanced research in the field of convergent technologies (ICT, nano-, bio-, and cognitive technologies).