Answer
The Nikolayev Military Engineering Institute was a prestigious military engineering school in St. Petersburg, Russia. It was founded in 1819 by Tsar Alexander I and was one of the most important military engineering schools in the world. Dostoevsky attended the institute from 1838 to 1843, and he graduated with honors. The institute gave him a strong foundation in mathematics, engineering, and science, which he would later use in his writing.