Based on archival documents of the state archive of Nur-Sultan, the author examines the history of the creation and development of student and youth teams that arrived to conquer virgin lands in Kazakhstan from the Tatar ASSR, assesses the role of the squad movement, the importance of competitions between youth teams in raising virgin land. It is concluded that with the development of the student and youth movement, it is formed as a special institution that was engaged not only in the organization of economic work, but also in public education.