The article focuses on the role and the position of the Russian system of higher education in the Bologna process. The author dwells on the documents prepared for ministerial conferences including the Ministerial Conference in Paris held on May 24–25, 2018 and analyzes them from the position of inconsistency between the national educational policy in Russia and the Bologna process. Russia jointed the Bologna process fifteen years ago and made a commitment to provide integration in European higher education area. The results of this process may be treated differently, but such factors as magnitude, irreversibility, and incompleteness are evident. The report 2015 shows that Russia hasn’t implement the national qualifications framework, the implemented ECTS system is not entirely adequate to ECTS Users’ Guide, the problem of providing graduates with Diploma Supplement hasn’t yet been solved. The specifics of Russia’s approach to the problem of quality assurance are that there are both state accreditation and independent public procedures on academic recognition (accreditation agencies – ENQA members). The paper addresses quality assurance as a key tool of the integrating process.

The article analyzes the features of the “new” postgraduate course programs that have been implemented in the system of higher education in Russia since 2013. The article also identifies and describes the most vulnerable areas of the “new” postgraduate course and looks at solutions to the identified issues. The analysis of the features and the classification of the problems related to the implementation of doctoral studies as the third level of higher education are based on the results of analytical and sociological researches conducted in Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow Pedagogical State University, Association of the Classical Universities in Russia in 2017–2018. When formulating their recommendations on overcoming the challenges facing “new” doctoral education, the authors took into consideration the draft law “About scientific, technical, and innovation activities”, the key priorities of the National project “Science”, and the approaches to the creation of a new qualification system of scientific, research and pedagogical personnel.

One of the most important and, according to psychological and pedagogical literature, the least investigated aspects of the domestic system of higher education is the sphere of personal interrelations at the level “teacher – student”. The formation of this type of social relations is a complicated process equally depending on both interested sides, but it is this process that eventually determines the efficiency of the educational process. At present anonymous questioning of both students and teachers is by far the only method of high quality psychodiagnostics of this sphere of educational space. The received findings not only give a more comprehensive idea of the personal characteristics of modern students and the teaching staff of higher schools but can also provide some essential corrective amendments to the organization of the educational process. Anonymous questioning of 400 students of the medical and pediatric faculties of Kursk State Medical University (KSMU) has revealed a number of both quite predictable and fairly unexpected facts concerning the psychological atmosphere at the level “teacher – student”. The received findings to some extent alter the firmly established idea of an elevated ambitiousness of the modern generation of students. Corroborative to it is the objective fact of a lowered personal self-esteem in 38% questioned students of KSMU. The fact of the negative judgment of professional and personal qualities of some teachers (16% of respondents) is alarming and needing thorough consideration and practical conclusions. The comparatively low demand of the recommended to students main academic teaching manuals of the studied disciplines (56%) and the actually unclaimed lectures delivered to them (8%) can be to a great extent explained by their competitive disability in comparison with the short in form but superficial in the contents various kinds of “homebrew” guidance-manuals permanently ranking first in the teachers’ annual rating reports.

In recent years, the terms ‘corporate/organizational culture’ and ‘ranking’ have become important reference points for the Russian system of university management and criteria for assessing the quality of higher education. However, these terms are rarely considered as interrelated, which can be explained mainly by the lack of studies assessing the role of corporate culture as a tool for improving universities’ positions in the international rankings. Nevertheless, the available data allow to draw some conclusions about characteristics of the corporate culture of the leaders of the world university rankings (it is a combination of the elements of market, adhocracy and clan types of organizational culture), which are not yet typical for classical Russian universities with the dominance of the elements of clan and bureaucratic/hierarchical types of corporate culture. The article presents the results of two surveys conducted in the RUDN University on the basis of CameronQuinn methodology. They revealed the framework of competing values and showed that over the past decade the share of bureaucratic/hierarchical type decreased due to an increase in the share of market and adhocracy types of culture that are typical for the leaders of world university rankings.

The paper describes an interdisciplinary experience of teaching one of the modules of medical informatics in English. The interdisciplinary approach was introduced in the Ural State Medical University (USMU). During 2015–2017 academic years, the interdisciplinary team including teachers of the biomedical physics, informatics and mathematics department and foreign languages department of USMU were developing and introducing integrative classes on medical informatics in English. In total, 287 students of general medicine, pediatrics, dentistry and preventive medicine faculties participated in the survey concerning integrative training in medical informatics in English. Evaluation of both foreign language communication skills and abilities to search medical information in international databases was performed during practical studies. 76% of medical students responded positively to the opportunity to improve foreign language communication skills for professional purposes. We find it possible to develop some modules of professional disciplines in English to teach medical students.

The paper discusses the impact of English for Specific Academic Purposes teaching methodology on developing in-house materials for the course of English for Social Sciences taught at the Moscow School of Social and Economic Sciences. The paper gives examples of the materials and provides results of their evaluation. The case study demonstrates efficiency of the approach to in-house materials development based on collaboration with faculty, teachers of English for Specific Academic Purposes in other disciplines, and students. The approach involves analysis of the materials designed at different stages of the educational process. Research results are assessed through the survey conducted among the students and interviews conducted with faculty members and teachers of English for Specific Academic Purposes. The efficiency of the employed approach makes it possible to use it as a model for developing in-house materials in similar academic contexts in non-linguistic universities.

The paper provides information to support its title (“Skeptic’s comment…”). The author shares his attitudes towards a new research area of academic writing (AW) and a system of teaching AW. The paper is presented in a form of a dialog between the author and the advocates of AW. In the author’s opinion, these advocates do not answer a number of questions to be asked for including their ideas into the scope of pedagogical knowledge. While admitting the value of analyzing foreign publications on AW, interpreting them and creating a teaching and learning system tailored for our national practice, the author states that the arguments to recognize AW as an independent academic discipline or a new research area are not sufficient. The author supports this idea by a series of speculations expanded in the paper sections to follow. They include doubts about the completeness of methodological arguments (considering the contemporary state of matter in epistemology, attitude towards new type rationality, unique features of cognition in science and humanities, rationale for the relevance of social constructivism for AW, and etc.), and about the insufficient attention towards the contemporary pedagogical methodology. The status of AW is discussed as if sidestepping the national achievements in investigating the language, speech, text (academic), discourse, linguistic and rhetoric conventions, and etc. The skepticism regarding the AW system can also be explained by the fact that the author does not agree with a number of statements denying the figural and publicistic images in an academic style, personal characteristics, opinions, emotional experiences and beliefs; negating the talent, literature expertise and imitation as assistants for academic writing; inferring the impossibility of learning academic writing independently. The author is confused by the insufficient attention towards the investigations on eloquence carried out in the 1980s in our native country (e.g. by S.S. Averintsev, A.K. Avelichev, and etc.); it is clear that the expertise in foreign research does not negate the knowledge about the research in our native country. Through critically analyzing the components of the AW system, the author concludes that AW is to be considered as one of possible technological solutions for the problem of creating a scholarly proper academic text.

The urgent tasks of the national economy modernization and the need in human resources able and ready for creative work and innovations led to the development of a new educational technology in higher school. Training assignments and exercises are being replaced by selfdirected thinking efforts aimed at understanding of scientific generalizations and professional skills mastering. A modular approach to course design together with competence approach laid down the foundations for a new educational technology of professional education. The paper asserts that modular learning creates a new informal style of communication between students and teachers, which is based on teamwork in specialized educational, engineering centres and labs. Cluster technology combines theory and work experience, reveals features and specifics of subjects. Courses should be practice-oriented, and cluster tasks should be multivariant. Special attention should be paid to control questions. On the whole, cluster learning provides favourable conditions for the development of students’ creative abilities and creative thinking.

The article presents the experience of developing technology that ensures effective digital quality control of continuous education, development of intellectual abilities and professional competencies both of students and teachers. A description of the substantive changes in control, self-development and activity processes is given. The developed technology makes it possible to completely change the control of educational and research activities not only of a student, but also of a teacher, providing an opportunity for personal design of the educational route. In the context of presence of all the subjects of the educational process in the environment, the scheme for obtaining new knowledge is fundamentally changing; this is achieved by joint actions, since the basis of an interactive intellectual environment is an interaction, a constant exchange of information, opinions, decisions, experience. Such environment has a developing character; it promotes the formation of project and heuristic skills as well as skills associated with finding and implementing non-standard solutions in professional activities. Continuous feedback distinguished by an individual approach and a high differentiation of education by means of providing each student with a personal teacher, tutor, whose role is fulfilled by a computer.

The article addresses the problems of formation and implementation of a youth policy at the university aimed at promoting spiritual and moral values, educating a socially responsible person. The authors describe the ways to strengthen the university’s role in the development of local communities, urban and regional environment. These issues are considered on the example of the implementation of the strategic project of Sochi State University “Youth Center for Spiritual, Moral and Social Development”. During its existence, including in the status of the basic university of Krasnodar Region, the university has accumulated considerable experience in developing an active life position among young people through building relationships not only among students, but also between the university and various subjects of the socio-economic, political, spiritual and cultural infrastructure of the region. The project “Youth Center for Spiritual, Moral and Social Development” is a successful experience in uncovering students’ social talents, establishing interaction with the authorities, administration, and social partners in order to solve pressing social problems, to inculcate in the youth spiritual and moral values, to involve young people in social entrepreneurship. The potential of this form of work is revealed in the development of social activity of young people acting in the interests of the whole society.

The development of the volunteer movement is one of the important tasks of the state policy of modern Russia. Today, many universities create on their basis volunteer centers (EC), which are one of the best mechanisms for attracting young people to solving urgent problems of the development of society, an additional pedagogical and personal-developing resource. This article presents the results of the implementation by Sochi State University (SSU), which is a pillar higher education institution of the Krasnodar Territory, the strategic project “Resource Center for Event Volunteering”, aimed at ensuring the sustainable development of volunteering in the region and the Russian Federation as a whole. Volunteering is viewed as an institution of civil society and the basis for implementing long-term socio-cultural projects. The article describes the experience of the SSU in the development of volunteerism in the region, the improvement of its resource provision, the establishment of cooperation in solving these problems with the authorities, administration and the management of volunteer organizations of pillar universities and the region. A flexible universal model of training volunteers and organizers of the volunteer movement, organizational and managerial conditions and scientific and methodological approaches to the organization of student volunteering are presented. The results of their implementation in the region are described. The authors substantiate the expediency of the creation of volunteering resource centers in the regions, providing educational organizations with a range of information, advisory and methodological services in the field of volunteering.

An important task of pillar university within the framework of the implementation of the “third mission” is the work with gifted schoolchildren and youth of the region. The education programs and activities are aimed at involving them in scientific and innovation activities, identifying talents, early career guidance, attracting talented students to the region. For this purpose, Sochi State University has developed a number of projects of various target orientations, including with partners (Educational Center “Sirius”, ANO “Sea of Ideas”, etc.), which allows us to expand the geography of admission and raise the initial level of applicants’ training. This article presents the experience of SSU in working with talented schoolchildren and young people, including such projects as the organization of the All-Russian Multidisciplinary Engineering Olympiad “Zvezda”, Classes with talented schoolchildren in preparing them for participation in competitions, “Venture Accelerator”, “Improving teachers’ qualification to work in regional research and educational centers”, “Formation of a sociological portrait of applicants, students and graduates of educational programs of secondary vocational education providing training for the most popular, new and promising professions and specialties of secondary vocational education”.

The article presents the mechanisms, regional effects and the model of refocusing scientific and practical activities of Sochi State University from fragmentary research in certain areas of applied science (in the past) to complex interdisciplinary projects. These projects are being implemented since the university was granted a status of a pillar university in Krasnodar territory and aimed at ensuring sustainable development of Sochi and the region as a whole. As a result of the implementation of the flagship strategic project “Expert-Analytical Center ‘Agency of Modern Technologiesfor SustainableTourism’”, an interdisciplinary expert-analytical,scientific, consulting, and information-communication environment has been formed at Sochi State University in order to increase the efficiency of cooperation between government, business, local consumers and tourist services, as well asto overcome the barriersto the socio-economic development ofthe region and to the natural balance between the generations.The aim isto develop and putinto practice the measurable quantities of forecasting processes in the system “nature – economy – society – man” for the subsequentspreading of acquired experience to other territories.The implementation ofthe project stimulated the growth of university credibility with the regional representatives of the innovation community and allowed to increase the number of industrial partners, the amount of R & D funded from extrabudgetary sources to 82%, including 43% of small and medium businesses.

The paper reviews a present state of the Bologna reforms in terms of their analysis made at the Paris Conference of European Ministers responsible for higher education. The paper is based on numerous materials presented to the Conference by major organizations and associations engaged in conceptual, methodological and regulatory support of the Bologna reforms (EUA, EURASHE, ENQA, ESU, etc.). Among the main challenges of this Bologna transformation stage are implementing studentcentered approach to education as well as focusing on learning outcomes in terms of the competencebased model. The article notes unevenness of the ongoing reforms, disregard of their implementation cohesiveness and a growing negative impact of the current financial and economic problems. The author dwells on difficulties in acquiring a new pedagogical paradigm which asserts a shift “from teaching to learning” in higher education didactics. There are also difficulties in implementing key Bologna commitments including adoption of a three-cycle structure of higher education, academic and professional recognition of qualifications, internal and external quality assurance. The paper highlights the need for a complex systematic work related to the development of strategies for the digitalization of education. The paper brings the experience of European universities concerning ethical practices, the fight against corruption in academic environment and educational management, eradication of incorrect citation and plagiarism in scientific researches, including usurpation of authorship. The paper concludes with outlining main development directions of the Bologna reforms for their third decade.

The article highlights the main results of the 25-year work of Sociocentre – one of the scientific organizations subordinated to the Ministry of higher education and science of the Russian Federation. It is noted that, during the first two decades of its existence, a small group of researchers conducted over 600 large-scale sociological studies and, to date, published more than 200 monographs and collections of scientific papers, statistical compendiums, conference proceedings together with other scientific organizations.

This article is a review of a monograph “Innovation University: network perspective in partner associations” (Authors: Romm, M.V., Zayakina, R.A., Filatova, E.V., Luchikhina, L.F., Il’yin, S.E., published in Novosibirsk in 2018), which treats university activities in the context of the analysis of network unions. The monograph reveals the purposes, values, motives, and mechanisms of university network communication. The article shows the topicality of the authors’ approach to view university as an institute for socialization in conditions of instrumentalization and operationalization of education.