In the context of reforming higher education, the problem of developing and implementing a new, effective management policy aimed at attracting, retaining and motivating highly qualified scientific and pedagogical personnel is of particular relevance. However, as noted in a number of studies, university teachers find themselves in a difficult situation, which is caused by a decline in public recognition of the value of the profession, staff shortages, turnover and aging of staff, a crisis of motivation and professional identity in higher education amid significant complications in professional activities. The current stage of development of higher education is characterized by large-scale innovation processes, therefore, the management of the motivation of teachers of higher education institutions should be considered as the management of motivation in the context of innovation. The basis of this approach is the orientation on creativity and stimulation of innovative behavior of personnel. It is obvious that the task of managing the motivation of the work of teachers of higher education should be solved as soon as possible, without interrupting the professional activities and within the working teams themselves. The article presents the experience of developing and testing a layered model of intra-departmental management of university teachers' motivation, which is based on the idea of forming a motivated team and creating a corporate culture that will help effectively manage innovative processes at the university.

The current process of doctoral education, as well as its results, remain the target of severe criticism despite the adoption of a system of measures aimed at improving the quality of dissertation review including ubiquitous plagiarism checks, reduction of the number of defenses of substandard dissertations and a stricter code of practice for dissertation committees. The article identifies potential ways to improve dissertation quality, drawing on an analysis of the dynamics of indicators pertaining to the training of contemporary Russian doctoral students and the activity of their academic supervisors. The authors give special consideration to justified recommendations concerning the following issues: improvement of the quality of doctoral student body; increase in scholarship provision in conjunction with the creation of financial incentives for dissertation completion and defense; development of mechanisms to improve the performance of academic supervisors; refinement of the procedure of dissertation results examination in each of three interconnected stages: student performance review, dissertation defense and dissertation review by the expert board of the State Commissions for Academic Degrees and Titles.

The task of the investigation was to study the interrelations of the results of university rankings presented by various ranking agencies. Data on the number of the participants in the World Rankings has been presented for the Webometrics Ranking of World Universities (WRWU), Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU), Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), Times Higher Education (THE), U-Multirank, Round University Ranking (RUR), the Moscow International Rating “Three University Missions”, SCImago Institutions Rankings (SIR).

The correlations have been studied by the methods of mathematical statistics for the results of the Moscow International Rating “Three University Missions” and the RUR, QS, THE, and the WRWU rankings; of the QS rankings with THE and the WRWU rankings, as well as for the two WRWU rankings published in January 2018 and July 2017. The linear regression formulas linking the positions of universities in different rankings have been obtained. The results of the Moscow International Rating “Three University Missions” moderately correlate with the results of the RUR rankings, the correlation with WRWU is low. The correlations for the QS ranking with THE and the WRWU rankings are moderate. Very high correlation has been detected only for the two WRWU rankings, which raises questions about the feasibility of conducting them with an interval of six months.

The article analyzes modern problems and trends of development of the system of higher education. The persistent expansion of regulation and uncontrolled growth of bureaucracy increase dependence of regulated areas on private interests of those who have access to the regulatory machine. This tendency has not bypassed the academic sphere, and, in many instances, there is a clear discrepancy between the proclaimed objectives and observed results. The vivid example is the Russian system of higher education, which is the main focus of the present study. We explain this phenomenon through the lens of the institutional corruption theory and argue that the observing evolution of modern academia forms a wrong system of incentives, bringing to the hands of bureaucrats excessive power, which, eventually, distorts the performance of the higher education sphere and undermines the effectiveness of this important institution.

The article focuses on hierarchical and inverse relations in social systems. Hierarchy is the basic form of organization in social systems. Complex hierarchies have the ability to form inverse relationships. Inverse relationships occur when the lower element in social hierarchy becomes the dominant, but formally remains in a subordinate position. In a hierarchical system, there are certain organizational principles that determine the mutual position of the elements. There are several such principles in complex hierarchies. Inversions arise when two or more organizational principles collide in social hierarchy. The developed inversions are a manifestation of internal contradictions in the hierarchical system. The accumulation of these contradictions can lead to the collapse of the hierarchical system. For example, the development of social inversions can cause a revolution in which certain organizational principles in the social system are abolished. But in some cases, resolving of these contradictions leads to another step in the progressive development of the system. Thus, the resolution of contradictions occurs when the subject actually moves to a higher position in the social hierarchy. One of the most important organizational principles that determine the position of the subject in the social hierarchy is based on the educational level of this subject. Increasing the level of education entails the increase of the subject’s social status. However, the position of the subject in the social hierarchy is also determined by other organizational principles. These principles may conflict with the educational organizational principle. As a result, there is a social inversion. Education is a factor that can both generate inversions in the social hierarchy and eliminate them. The development of society is closely connected with the manifestations of the educational organizational principle, with its interaction with other organizational principles in the social hierarchy. The analysis of inverse relations in social hierarchies is an effective research tool that allows to predict and prevent social tension in society.

The purpose of the study was to identify specific emotionally colored ideas about the future that determine the value of a diploma of higher education for modern undergraduate students in full-time education. The students of the first and fourth years of full-time education of five universities and five branches of universities in different regions of Russia, majoring in the different areas of training (specialty) took part in the study. The method of unfinished sentences was used. It has been shown that undergraduate students in their majority do not consider the diploma as a document that reflects the qualification and level of education of the owner, which determines the prospects for employment and career growth. The presence of a diploma, from the point of view of students, should guarantee its owner the loyalty of the society.

The article analyzes cross-border cooperation in the aspects of educational sphere, focuses on the analysis of cross-border educational cooperation impact on young Murmansk region inhabitants’ understanding of specific northern territorial development, while the northern identity is treated as a factor of interethnic unification. The authors emphasize that the transboundary region, including the European and the Russian segments, presupposes cooperation on the basis of effective competition between two heterogeneous systems: on the one hand - Russian, and on the other hand – belonging to all other states of Barents Euro-Arctic region: Finland, Sweden and Norway. The approach underlying the idea of the Barents Euro-Arctic region existence implies the emphasis to cultural and educational resources in the enlarged sense of the word. The authors pay special consideration to the phenomenon of academic mobility and the role of academic mobility programs in the process of forming the northern identity. Migration of academically oriented youth is considered by the authors to be the central link of the world system of higher education. The article presents the materials of the research, which reflects the perception of the border phenomenon by the youth of Murmansk region. As a result of the analysis of the questionnaire data collected from young residents of the Murmansk region, it was found out that the border has always been and remains a kind of barrier for Russians, but the desire to overcome this barrier is obvious. According to the authors of the article, the "barrier"-like perception of the border can be substantially removed by the participation of the region's youth in various programs of academic mobility and by the "inclusion" into the dialogue of cultures.

In the context of reforming higher education, the problem of developing and implementing a new, effective management policy aimed at attracting, retaining and motivating highly qualified scientific and pedagogical personnel is of particular relevance. However, as noted in a number of studies, university teachers find themselves in a difficult situation, which is caused by a decline in public recognition of the profession value, staff shortages, turnover and aging of staff, a crisis of motivation

and professional identity in higher education amid significant complications in professional activities. The current stage of higher education development is characterized by large-scale innovation processes, therefore, management of the motivation of teachers of higher education institutions should be considered as the management of motivation in the context of innovation. The basis of this approach is an orientation on creativity and stimulation of personnel’s innovative behavior. It is obvious that the task of effective management of university teachers’ motivation should be solved as soon as possible, without interrupting the professional activities and within the working teams. The article presents the experience of developing and testing a layered model of intra-departmental management of university teachers’ motivation, which is based on the idea of forming a motivated team and creating a corporate culture that will help effectively manage innovative processes at the university.

The paper presents the analysis of the results of the Chinese higher education system reforming in the late 20th and early 21st century, shows the dynamics of the number of higher education institutions, the number of students and graduates. The structure of graduates in educational fields from 1995 to 2016 has been analyzed. The paper also presents the dynamics of funding of the China’s universities according to official statistics of China.

The national educational reforms led to a rapid growth of the number of the universities and the number of students. Higher education has turned from the elite phenomenon to a mass one. Gross enrolment ratio in tertiary education had been increased in 9,5 times (from 1995 to 2016) and reached 42,7% in 2016. Now the Chinese government provides an extensive support to the students studying at foreign universities. It is worth mentioning that the percentage of students who had returned to China after studying abroad has been increased in three times from 28% in 1995 to 79% in 2016. The structure of graduates (according to educational fields) correlates with the needs of the growing Chinese economy: 34% of graduates have engineering professions. The largest rise of the number of graduates has been observed in economics and managerial specialties, as well as in pedagogy. The main contemporary result of the recent reforms is an international recognition of Chinese universities and a presence of the best of them in the top 100 of word university rankings.

The article focuses on the current state and the problems concerning implementing joint educational programs by Russia and China. The author dwells on the concept of the joint educational program, proposes a classification of joint educational programs, including joint degree programs (joint diploma), double degree programs (double diplomas), and the program of included training. The analysis of visiting Russian-Chinese and inbound Sino-Russian joint educational programs as at 2018 was carried out. The problems and obstacles of joint educational programs implementation by Russia and China are revealed, among which are: legislation problems, problems of the language of instruction, problems of the cost of education, the necessary information support. The most serious problems relate to the legislation. First of all, it is the uncertainty concerning the meaning of the term “joint educational program” in the legislation framework. The attendant problems are licensing and accreditation of joint programs, award of diplomas, asymmetry between the number of visiting and inbound programs. The author comes to a conclusion that the legislation framework in the sphere of joint educational programs should include the following items: enrolment rules for foreign students in Russian universities; mechanisms of recognition of mobility periods and credits transfer for foreign participants of joint programs, migration rules of short-term courses.

Involving the talented youth in the processes of innovation development is an important factor in the development of the society and modernization of the Russian economy. The national education system defines working with gifted children and young people as a key priority. The role of universities in youth talents training and management increases inasmuch the purpose of educational institutions is not only training of specialists with the highest professional qualification but creating the so-called intellectual elite of the country as well. The model of talent management system functioning at I.N. Ulianov Chuvash State University is described in the article. The article examines the complex multi-level system presented by interaction between elements «school – higher education provider – production». The basic forms of identifying and following up gifted schoolchildren and students and forms of supporting young lecturers are considered. A number of the University structural subdivisions such as Centre for working with the gifted youth, Center of Supplementary Education, Vocational Guidance Center, Innovation-implementation Center take part in working with talents by implementing a year-round complex of events. One of the key factors in functioning the talent management system is staffing. With a view to maintaining continuity, fostering young teachers’ motivation the University implements in-house target programs. One of the most effective forms of preserving and transferring the best practices of professional adaptation is tutorship. A multilevel approach makes it possible to create conditions for maximum revealing talents in students, professionals and to build the system of continuity within the system of working with young talents.

The article addresses the problem of organizing Olympiads and competitions for schoolchildren and students by the University to identify and support them in their individual educational and career trajectory, with the participation of employers in the region. To solve this problem, I.N. Ulianov Chuvash State University is implementing a number of projects in the partnership system «school – University – enterprise». The article highlights the activities of the Centre for working with the talented youth of I.N. Ulianov Chuvash State University aimed at realization of the strategic project roadmap of the University «Formation and development of the complex for popularization of promising careers, engaging and support of the talented youth in the system of multilevel anticipatory staff training». The article describes a unique experience in organizing academic Olympiads and creative design contests for schoolchildren in conjunction with innovative enterprises of the Chuvash Republic, among which are: «Hope of Chuvashia electrical engineering», «Hope of Chuvashia mechanical engineering», «Builders of the future », «Electronics 4.0», «IT-Ring». Winners and prizeholders of these academic Olympiads and contests get involved into the work of professional navigational guidance platform of the University «Center for career planning». Currently, the University is actively working on adaptation and introduction of the tutorship model. Key indicators of Olympiad movement efficiency in the network of cooperation with enterprises are provided. An analysis of these indicators makes it possible to conclude that various academic Olympiads and competitive activities for schoolchildren held together with enterprises-partners increase the number of winners and prize-holders of the highest level academic Olympiads entering the University. The article also discusses the forms of supplementary education for gifted schoolchildren and their teachers-tutors. It is stated that the value is not holding Olympiads and identifying talented schoolchildren, but regular classes with them in clubs and in supplementary education courses. It is concluded that by attracting talented graduates of secondary educational institutions to enter the University and their active participation in student Olympiad movement organized in partnership with leading innovative enterprises, the problem of professional elite developing in the region is successfully being solved.

The article assesses the changes in the role of classical universities in transforming the socio-economic environment in territories where they are located, addresses the problems of developing effective talent management systems and innovation and research infrastructure of business type. In the face of a new technological paradigm requirements for training future specialists change, they include not only transferring basic and professional knowledge, but development of students’ creative abilities, activating opportunities for their self-fulfillment, autonomy, mobility, ability to work in a problematic situation as well. In this regard, the article substantiates the urgency of entrepreneurial training at universities, as well as the need to identify and support business strategies of student youth. The article discusses the issue of introducing individual undergraduate programs in entrepreneurship. The article provides the experience of I.N. Ulianov Chuvash State University in creating a continuing multilevel education system which makes it possible for all motivated students of any major and specialty to receive basic competences in the field of entrepreneurship. Particular attention is paid to the development of innovation-research infrastructure of business type in the region and at the University. The article describes the experience and prospects of ChuvSU business incubator, which should become an effective tool for generating a new wave of entrepreneurs in the region. Technologies of the business incubator which are aimed at timely identifying persons capable of entrepreneurial activity, at making students’ entrepreneurial initiatives more active, at assisting in developing business skills and obtaining the necessary knowledge have been examined. Effective functioning of the business incubator is regarded as a factor in increasing the University brand value. The business incubator now faces the issues in its work, which cannot be solved without participation of public authorities and business organizations in the region. The article substantiates the need of preparing a training program together with the region to support and retain talented students “Future leaders of Chuvashia economy”, consisting of basic blocks: education, innovation and research infrastructure; support system for innovative entrepreneurial initiatives; infrastructure management.

The article emphasizes the importance and relevance of engineering education in the face of challenges of the modern information society, development of new technologies and knowledgeintensive industries. Attention is paid to the low level of demand for engineering professions among potential entrants, as well as to the issue of developing competencies needed for a modern engineer, taking into account the requirements of the labour market. The article describes the experience of I.N. Ulianov Chuvash State University on organizing career-guidance work with pupils of educational in-stitutions, including implementation of projects aimed at popularization of engineering education. One of such significant for the region projects is “Engineering classes”, in which senior classes schoolchildren of four leading partner-schools of the University take part. The training program includes lessons on mathematics, physics and computer sciences, reinforcing training of future entrants for getting higher engineering-technical education, as well as an elective part on solving applied engineering tasks from the following sections: electronics, robotics, mechatronics, 3D modeling, engineering graphics, and prototyping. A specific feature of the project is a broad engagement of students majoring in technical directions as tutors into the educational process when schoolchildren perform research and design work. Along with higher levels of knowledge in basic subjects for a future engineer, an active participation of schoolchildren in project activities makes it possible to develop communication skills, acquire experience of team work, which is particularly in demand by employers. The article stresses the important role of the largest industrial regional enterprises in implementing the project. These enterprises provide their production sites to explore the organization of production and professional activities of engineers, as well as participate in holding Olympiads and creative contests and provide opportunities for subsequent target training. Thus, the project «Engineering classes» makes it possible to implement the model of continuing education in a single chain «School-University-Enterprise», thereby creating preconditions for the growth of human capacity in regional high-tech enterprises.

The paper focuses on the analysis of ontological, epistemological and pedagogical terms of changes in education, first of all – on the status of an academic subject. From the ontological perspective, they are related to transfer from “object” ontology to communication-and-activity one, in terms of epistemological approach – from naturalism to transcendentalism, whereas with regard to pedagogical perspective – from autocratic-disciplinary organization of the academic process to a student-oriented pattern. The first part of the article describes academic subject’s functions in the process of educational reproduction. An academic subject is interpreted not so much from the perspective of the knowledge it contains, but as a complex linguistic code which organizes and regulates educational interaction. Its basics and structure, a mechanism of constituting educational reality are described, as well as the design specifics that hamper changes in education. The authors dwell on the distinction between an academic and scholarly subject. Part two of the article contains criticism of an academic subject practice in the university education. The central event here is attributed to differentiation and diversification of the form of academic subject, disintegration of its integrity into local autonomous linguistic fields. The conclusion formulates the idea how to overcome an academic subject crisis, which heart is discursive transformation of its representation practice. Based on Gilles Deleuze’s ideas, the authors consider the transformation of discursive practices in which an academic subject is embodied to be the condition for education change.

The paper is an attempt to analyze the language of the Polish core curriculum for primary schools and the language of teaching methodology, created by the core curriculum, as a source of stereotype thinking about school and the (im)possibility of changing the model of education. In this perspective, the language of methodological documents appears as a significant barrier to changes in the educational system, perpetuating traditional teaching, and leading to the blocking of the development of students.