The St. Petersburg Mining University summed up the interim results of a pilot project to create a sovereign system of higher education. The meeting participants confirmed their readiness for large-scale implementation of the new model throughout Russia.
The first stage of the higher education reform initiated by presidential decree has been completed. The experiment started in 2023, and the St. Petersburg Mining university became his flagship. It was here that a holistic educational model was developed and successfully tested, which replaced the Bologna system.
The basis of the new model is the fundamental educational core – a single set of basic disciplines for the first two courses. This allows students to thoroughly prepare before making their final choice of specialty. The training of mining engineers now lasts six years, and the duration of training in other areas may vary depending on the complexity of the program.
The key change is increased practical training. Students master at least eight additional competencies and two working professions. The university’s industrial partners switched to academic status, actively participating in the educational process through the department of “Practical skills and experience.” Representatives of enterprises evaluate the level of students’ production skills and are members of qualification commissions.
Minister of Science and Higher Education Valery Falkov noted the leadership role of Gorny university in this project. In 2023, the university was the only one of all participants in the experiment to begin admitting all first-year students under the new model.
University Rector Vladimir Litvinenko said that more than 7 thousand students are already studying under the updated programs. The number of applications from applicants this year has increased by 3.5 times, which indicates a high demand for quality engineering education.
Other leading universities in the country also joined the pilot project. Tomsk State University is working on programs in the natural sciences, socio-humanities and engineering areas. The Baltic Federal University enrolled 925 first-year students in new programs. The Moscow Aviation Institute has transferred all students to a modular training system.
To scale the project, it is proposed to create industry-specific university clusters led by parent universities. Many Russian universities have already shown interest in participating in such associations. An important element of cooperation will be network technological testing sites, which the Mining University is ready to provide to partners.
The transition to a new educational model will be systematic. The second half of 2025 and 2026 is planned to be devoted to promoting the project and connecting new participants. This will allow Russia to create an engineering corps that meets the needs of a modern economy.
The material was prepared with the support of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science as part of the Decade of Science and Technology.
Source: forpost-sz.ru
