When the Soviet Union was intact, university professors lived fairly well, with decent salaries and apartments. Academicians were like gods, with vast dachas and chauffeured cars. Today, there is more freedom, but there are fewer perks. Salaries no longer support a satisfactory standard of living and this financial shortfall encourages a system of tutoring that may be even more insidious than SAT prepping in the United States. A standardized university entrance exam has been written, but has not been greeted enthusiastically since it would eliminate a system from which many have profited.
Professors also supplement their income by doing double duty, often at a rival school.
At some commercial institutions, most of the faculty is made up of professors moonlighting from low-paying jobs at state schools.