The article deals with the results of historical and pedagogical generalization of the modern stage of higher education development in Mongolia. The contribution of pre-revolutionary, Soviet and modern Russia to the formation of the Mongolian education system is analyzed. The reasons and consequences of the introduction of the Cyrillic in Mongolia are under consideration. The Mongolian education reform in the 1990s is evaluated; the conceptual foundations of creation of the Mongolian State Conservatoire are investigated.