The authors of the present paper conducted a comprehensive analysis of university place in the ecosystem of adult education, based on its characteristic functions, priorities of activity and emerging tensions. The participation of universities in the professional training of adults is analyzed. The research focus is projected on the assessment of the situation at the institutional (a university as a social institution) and organizational level (a university as a specific institution of higher education). A discussion of the prospects for transforming the place of higher institution in the ecosystem of adult education is presented. The study was conducted using a semiformalized interview method (n=36) with representatives of the commercial and public sector occupying key positions (heads and top management of universities, corporate universities, educational consulting organizations, providers of non-formal education services, etc.).

   Main results. Several points of university positioning in the structure of adult education ecosystem are identified: 1) the university is the core of the educational ecosystem and holds this status; 2) the university occupies the central place of the educational ecosystem, but can lose this status by certain actions or inaction; 3) the university is not the core of the educational ecosystem and should not be; 4) the university is not the core of the educational ecosystem, but could become it. According to most experts, universities occupy a central place in the ecosystem of adult education and have a high potential to retain leadership positions, provided that the educational material is relevant and meets the demands of the labor market. At the same time, it is important to consider that some participants of the educational ecosystem (online platforms, corporate universities and others) are rapidly increasing their influence and implementing large-scale educational programs for the population. Universities, having a high level of public trust and being mainly responsible for fundamental professional education, are interested in accumulating the advantages of other participants of the educational ecosystem. It is optimal to present the university as a central hub of educational practices for the population, accumulating the advantages of other actors of the adult education ecosystem. The article is addressed to administrative and managerial staff of universities, representatives of executive authorities and the real sector of the economy, scientific and pedagogical staff and graduate students seeking to study lifelong learning of adults.

   An analytical review of the models and risks in the researcher’s reproduction system in the scientific specialty “1.2.1. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning” is presented. The issues of graduate school management and regulatory barriers in the training of young scientists are considered. Successful practices for defending a PhD thesis at leading national research universities have been identified and categorized. The justifications for the need to protect a PhD thesis by machine learning engineers are given. Proposals for changes to the scientific model of postgraduate studies and for AI augmentation of scientific research have been summarized, which help overcome risks in assigning qualification based on the textual results of scientific work.

   The breakneck expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in recent years has attracted the attention of higher education researchers. However, their curiosity often comes down to using specific AI tools, such as text and image generators, translators, and personal assistants in the educational process. This paper considers a broader question: what fundamental problems and challenges does the penetration of AI technologies into human lives originate for higher education? The authors offer a working definition of what it means to give/receive higher education in the age of AI. This definition identifies five critical characteristics of higher education: 1) the professor and the student continue to be in a subject-subject relationship and learn from each other; 2) higher education should prepare for life in conditions of “human-machine” interdependence; 3) these conditions imply choice in situations of uncertainty; 4) the spread of AI technologies brings enormous opportunities and 5) almost unpredictable dangers, risks and threats to humans. The authors consider general principles and specific problems associated with entering AI tools into society and higher education. They discuss the inevitability of the evolvement of “machine-machine interdependence” related to the development of autonomous agents. In conclusion, several theses and counter-theses summarize the article’s argumentation.

   As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes an integral part of our daily lives, the concern of the teaching community about the illegal use of these technologies in the educational process is increasing. In order to adapt the education system and teaching practices to new technological challenges, it is necessary to analyze the opinions of all the parties concerned.

   The purpose of this study is to identify the attitude of students of Kazan Federal University to the use of artificial intelligence technologies in the educational process and the practice of their application in foreign languages learning process.

   To achieve this goal, an online survey of students of Kazan Federal University was conducted. The survey touched upon the practical aspects of the use of artificial intelligence in language teaching, the advantages and disadvantages of AI tools from the students’ point of view, as well as their opinion regarding the prospects of AI in education. As a result of the study, we came to the conclusion that at the moment AI tools are not widespread enough in teaching foreign languages. Only one-fifth of the respondents use these tools, but the respondents’ comments suggest that the number of users will grow. The attitude of students towards the use of AI is ambiguous, with responses ranging from enthusiastic to skeptical. Students’ positive impressions are mainly related to saving time and effort, as well as to the ability of AI to present complex materials with understandable language. Among the main disadvantages, the respondents noted unreliability of data and fake content. Despite the fact that students are generally positive about the use of AI, a significant part of respondents do not trust software products such as ChatGPT, since, in their opinion, it provides answers of average quality that need to be corrected. Based on the data obtained, the authors attempted to formulate recommendations on improving the methods of teaching and control in the process of teaching foreign languages at universities.

   The article discusses the ideas, devoted to mathematics education, of Lev D. Kudryavtsev, corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Sciences, professor-mathematician. These ideas are based on more than half a century of practical experience of L. D. Kudryavtsev at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology – he presented his vision of the problems of educating students, the unity of mathematics, as well as methods of teaching it in the collection of articles. The thoughts and ideas of L. D. Kudryavtsev are still relevant today, in the age of digital transformation of the education system and of the entire life of society.

   The development of university science is one of the state policy priorities in Russia today. To determine this process prospects, it is important to identify positive trends and best practices of leading Russian universities scientific activity. For this purpose, the article considers the organizational features and sources of university science funding, analyzes the main indicators of research performance and practices of research policy implementation, summarizes the scientific achievements of leading Russian universities. The article uses the methods of universities monitoring activities statistical analysis and substantive analysis of information about the universities` scientific activities posted in open sources. The conclusions are drawn about the formation in Russia leading universities group with a stable priority of research activities, the core of which is formed by leading technical sectoral universities and regional polytechnic universities, the practices of science organization and the main scientific achievements of which can significantly influence the further development of domestic university science, as well as the world scientific knowledge expansion and Russian society socio-economic development issues solution.

   The article compares the impact of student trust on their educational and career trajectories in vocational and higher education. Since 2015, in Russia, enrollment in upper-grade vocational education programs has exceeded enrollment in higher education programs, and increasingly, young people choose TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) institutions. Therefore, interest in studying various factors influencing the specific trajectories in TVET and higher education is growing. One of these factors is trust, which remains insufficiently studied. Trust has a positive effect on various aspects of education (academic achievements, satisfaction, loyalty to the university, etc.), which can directly or indirectly determine the choice of further educational and professional trajectory. The research data comes from a survey of Russian TVET and higher education students. Particularly in higher education, in contrast to TVET, student trust (in other students, teachers and management) influences their plans regarding educational and career trajectories after graduation. However, this influence depends on the subject of trust and on the intended life trajectory.

   The formation of cartographic competence is an urgent task of higher geographical education.

   The purpose of the study is to review current trends, summarize the results of research available in the literature, characterize the subject field of cartographic competence research and identify gaps in scientific knowledge regarding cartographic competence.

   To achieve it, the following tasks were solved: to reveal the essence of the concept of “cartographic competence” and the concepts of “cartographic literacy” close to it, “skills of reading geographical maps”, “spatial thinking”; based on the analysis of the literature, identify the most researched issues and gaps in scientific knowledge in the field of cartographic competence; identify promising areas for further research. A review of research on the formation of cartographic competence was conducted on the basis of analysis and meta-analysis methods according to the PRISMA 2020 criteria by sampling literature by keywords.

   Research results: a review of research on the definitions of the concept of “cartographic competence” and related concepts was carried out; the most researched problems of cartographic competence and empirical data obtained within the framework of this topic were identified; gaps existing in scientific knowledge were identified; the most promising areas of further research in the field of cartographic competence were identified.