The article discusses the mechanisms, models, best practices of the organization foreign students’ study in the cohort of “flagship universities” of the Russian Federation according to the policy of “soft power”. The purpose of this article is to determine the possibility and feasibility of using international cooperation of flagship universities as a tool of “soft power” implementation. The universities extend their partnership activities with the long-term goals to promote a positive image of our country, to ensure their development as well as the development of RF regions of their localization. The article is aimed at the elaboration of recommendations addressed to universities and education authorities. The statistical basis for the analysis was the monitoring data on the effectiveness of Russian universities (published data for 2017 and preliminary data for 2018). Factual information is based on the results of the development programs of flagship universities for 2017–2018. It should be noted that such an analysis is carried out for the first time and it is the first step towards the consideration of the international activities of flagship universities within the concept of “soft power”.

In 2008–2009, 29 national research universities (NRU) with approved priority areas of development were established in Russia. In 2019 the ten-year program of development of NRU comes to an end. The article presents the results of the analysis of the national research universities’ activity of training scientific personnel for high-tech industries. Two indicators were calculated for each priority area of development of NRU reflecting the shares of defenses of candidate and doctor theses in the national research universities in relation to all thesis defenses. This made it possible to assess what leading positions in priority areas are occupied by the national research universities. The analysis showed that NRU do not provide leading positions to 30% of the priority areas of development. In general, most of the national research universities occupy high positions in certain (specific) priority areas of development in terms of training scientific personnel for high-tech sectors of the economy.

International university rankings outcomes published in 2019 were analyzed by groups in accordance with university’s education and scientific activities. The authors used the methodology applied in the previous work, where they identified seven core activities: classical universities, technical universities, universities of economics, pedagogical universities, medical universities, agricultural universities, universities of culture and arts. The current analysis gained from the data insight and data comparison for 2013, 2014 and 2019 illustrates systematic dependence of the average grades on the university profile. Leading positions in the ranking are occupied by classical and technical universities. Next in the list are groups of pedagogical, economic and medical universities followed by groups of agrarian universities and universities of culture and arts that remain at similar level. According to the Webometrics Rankings, the universities of the group “Culture and Arts” have dramatically dropped since 2013 and 2014, owing to the increasing weight of science indicators. There was carried out the analysis of the positions taken by the top universities of related groups from all over the world including the European Union, the Eurasian Economic Union and the Republic of Belarus. It is illustrated that Russian universities are in the top of their profile groups within the EAEU. National Research University “Higher School of Economics” which is significantly ahead of other economic universities. Rating results in accordance with the profiles of educational and scientific activities of universities were proposed to submit on an equal basis with the classic world and subject ranking of universities.

The diversification of professional trajectories of academic degree holders is now becoming a global trend, and it prompts us to take a fresh look at the problem of evaluating the effectiveness of existing institutions for the training of academic and research personnel – the systems of doctoral education in Russia and abroad – in terms of the training of academic researchers and higher education teaching staff. Our two articles which share the scope of problems and have a single general concept, consecutively address the following issues: the collection and analysis of empirical data on training in doctoral programs; the dynamics of dissertation defense by graduates after the completion of doctoral programs; the actual timeframe of doctoral students’ advancement to their degree; the proportion of graduates who continue their scientific career after graduating from the doctoral program. The first article analyzes the organizational and methodological aspects of information and analytical support of institutions responsible for doctoral education in the countries of the European Union, the United States and Russia. It provides information about the organization of the systems for monitoring doctoral education and doctoral program graduates’ professional careers in foreign countries. The authors note the insufficient information support for the programs aiming to develop doctoral education in Russia, as well as the lack of empirical data necessary to assess the effectiveness of Russian doctoral education in the reproduction of human resources for the research and education sector. The results of the authors’ scientometric research concerning doctoral program graduates’ retention in the field of research and higher education are announced. The second article will present the details of the method and the results of these studies.

Fundamental changes in the system of training highly qualified personnel in postgraduate studies have actualized the problems of the targets for the functioning of postgraduate studies. The article analyzes the barriers that arise at the stages of training in postgraduate school and preparing for thesis defense. The empirical basis of the work was a survey of the target audience, which resulted in the formation and testing of a questionnaire to assess the impact of barriers on the outcome of postgraduate training and the completion of postgraduate study. The target sample contains three groups: postgraduate students, holders of Candidates of Science degree and Doctors of Science (scientific supervisors) representing higher education and scientific institutions of the Russian Federation. The sample object was 133 people. The results of the experiment were analyzed using statistical graphs method. To identify key barriers to complete postgraduate studies, the construction of the Pareto diagram was used. As a result, we have identified 20% of the most significant barriers impeding postgraduate training and significant barriers to completing the dissertation research. In order to visualize the structure of the barriers, a causal diagram of K. Ishikawa was used. Primary level factors responsible for the result have been identified including a postgraduate student, scientific supervisor, institution and the state. Further, factors of the secondary level in obtaining a positive result of postgraduate training are analyzed. The paper considers the possibility of carrying out some measures to reduce the barriers to successful completion of postgraduate training and Candidate thesis defense. It is noted that such factors as work-study scheme and family life barriers depend on postgraduate student. Higher education institution is also responsible for a number of significant barriers in postgraduate training, in particular the absence of a research reserve. A very powerful, but, unfortunately, rather rare tool for creating a research reserve for postgraduate studies is its integration with the magistracy. We can refer to a British experience of combining master’s and doctoral studies by way of example. The article also analyzes the organizational barriers during the periods of thesis preparation and submission as well as barriers relating to supervisor’s responsibility. The authors dwell on the problem of low motivation for getting the Candidate of Science degree. It is a common situation in Russia when a Candidate of Science degree holder cannot benefit from the degree obtained. It is necessary to envisage the expansion of positions and professions, where surcharges will be applied for the existing degrees, as well as more comfortable conditions for career growth.

The article discusses the influence of Metamodern culture and digitalization of education on the transformation of the pedagogical understanding of learning process. The author relies on the post-postmodern age interpretations presented in the works of S. Abramson, M. Epstein, R. Eschelman, A. Kirby, J. Mensch, P. Samuels, L. Turner, T. Vermeulen and R. Van den Acker; the transdisciplinary (B. Nicholescu) and connectivist (D. Cormier, G. Siemens) approaches and international documents about the education development in a complex society. In the Metamodern epoch under the influence of the universal digitalization there have been signs indicating that the theory and practice of learning has gone beyond the enduring some pedagogical meanings. This is being manifested at the level of the spontaneous transformation of the main components of learning process; changes in the pedagogical thesaurus, the emergence of “hybrid” didactic theories. The author defines this phenomenon as the post-pedagogical syndrome of the digital age which is capable to disrupt the historical continuity of educational culture. The article talks about the lack of resources in modern pedagogical science to explain the realities of lifelong education as a part of the Digimodernism culture and to develop the truly innovative ways of teaching. The author has suggested that the creation of effective methods of teaching and self-education in the digital age is possible only in the case of rethinking and reassessment of basic didactic categories and concepts on a transdisciplinary basis, taking into account the pedagogical experience of the analogical era and preserving the continuity of humanitarian values and meanings. The author’s arguments and conclusions are addressed to supporters of the study of education on an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary basis.

The article shows that the entrenched orientation of higher education towards the demands of the labor market requires rethinking and adjustment, since in modern conditions it does not guarantee the effectiveness of university’s activities and the ability to meet the challenges of the future. The real basis and guarantee of the university’s success is now the “synchronization” of its development strategy with the historical and epistemological trends in the development of knowledge, its functions and forms of being. In this context, the role and place of techno-science at university and university processes – research, design, and educational – is becoming especially important. It is argued that the current trends in the development of knowledge and science bring to life (and have already provoked) a new “projective-personal” paradigm of education. It is not focused on mastering the maximum academic knowledge (as it has been so far), but on individualizing the trainee’s educational trajectory and mastering the methods of synthesizing knowledge and project activities.

The article discusses two major problems in teaching physics for students majoring in IT at a technical university: 1) the forced change in the course structure and content due to the reduction in the time allotted for studying physics from three to two semesters, and 2) the uneven educational background of applicants, due to the fact that when entering a university, the results of the Unified State Examination in physics are not taken into account. The article analyzes the experience of the Physics Training Center at the ITMO University in St. Petersburg on conducting additional consultations on the school curriculum materials and on the development and using of electronic educational materials. The relevance of courses that are concentric in their structure, created by colleagues from the other universities, is noted. The authors propose to organize training for first-year students in various educational tracks, depending on their starting level. The article emphasizes the importance of maintaining completeness and ideological value of the course when revising the structure and content. The following conceptual scheme of the course is proposed: elementary physics as axiomatic science, statistical physics, quantum physics, quantum field theory (general concepts). The experience of the development and using of electronic educational materials (lecture presentations, electronic summaries of lectures and exercises) at ITMO University is analyzed. Despite the fact that, in general, e-learning elements make it possible to compensate the lack of class time caused by the program changes, students learn e-courses at different levels. It is noted that the reason, apparently, lies in the psychological unreadiness of a number of students to switch to “blended learning”. It is emphasized that in the mixed course creation the development of materials for assessing student performance and their final certification is a fundamentally new and time-consuming task, the preference is given to the traditional full-time exam. The authors consider that it expedient to preserve the traditional structure of the physics course at technical university.

The results of the reform of Russian higher education widely discussed among the pedagogical and expert community are characterized by the ambiguity and inconsistency of assessments. Special attention should be given to the need and results of the reforming in relation to the departmental universities of the power block which ensure the implementation of the country’s security functions. The features of the organization of the educational process in the departmental higher educational institutions of the power block are presented on the example of educational organizations of the EMERCOM of Russia system, starting from the entrance examinations stage and ending with the employment of graduates. The article considers the main directions of reforming the Russian higher education institutions and presents a critical analysis of their implementation in relation to departmental educational organizations of higher education of the power bloc. The peculiarities of the activities of departmental educational organizations of the power block, the tasks to be solved and the functions performed related to the training of specialists in the field of ensuring the security of a country require a balanced approach from the government education authorities when implementing measures aimed at the maximum integration of the higher education system into the global education system.

The purpose of the study is to identify and justify the modern perspectives of open educational resources (OER) for higher education in Russia. The methodology includes study of initiatives, services, OER tools in Russia and abroad, evaluation of OER development factors. The authors have conducted a survey of university lecturers, processing of the results using statistical methods of analysis. The following prospects for the development and use of OER in higher education are identified: 1) further dissemination of free access to educational materials through the involvement of a wider range of universities; 2) improving the quality of educational materials in the context of expanding access to them; 3) extension of electronic educational environment, since OER are not tied to specific tools or technologies, and may be distributed in social media, mobile applications. The study of international and Russian practice has shown that OER provide methodological support primarily to university lecturers, allowing them to study the best practices of education leaders, to handle OER in accordance with the educational objectives of their courses and the students’ requirements and expectation. As a result of the survey, it was found that 60% of lecturers at Russian universities distribute their own educational materials on the Internet during the educational process for the convenience of students.

Digitalization of modern education leads to a change in the style of the educational activities of students and professional work of higher school teachers. The professional standard of education workers oblige educators not only to develop educational content discipline, but also apply ICT to manage student’s training activity. The aim of the research was to study the capacity of the standard user statistics tool in LMS MOODLE for course optimization on three parameters – content presentation, temporary course structure and quality of educational measurement tools. These options, according to the authors, are the main factors for users’ motivation to consistent use of online courses during the semester. The study of statistical characteristics of student activity in e-course “Informatics” based on LMS MOODLE has been carried out during three years. The experiment covered the first-year students enrolled in the “Electricity and Electrical Equipment”. The results of the content optimization and presentation of the discipline have shown a positive change in the dynamics of the student’s activity during the semester. The findings of this study have a number of practical implications. Optimization of the learning process with the use of online course requires designing of a course with week module structure and singled out micro-targets. The learning material should be presented in various formats taking into account students’ preference for infographics. This contributes to raising the academic performance on the whole. Statistical analysis of test tasks differentiating capacity will substantially improve the quality of tools for educational measurement. It is shown that the use of a MOODLE statistics tool to estimate the user activity makes it possible the documented testing the effectiveness of innovations in pedagogical design of e-course.

In 2019 Yaroslavl State Medical University celebrates its 75th anniversary. For decades, the university has held strong positions in the educational and scientific space of modern Russia. Well-known scientists, health care managers, highly decorated experts in various branches of medicine and prominent public figures are among the alumni of the University. Today, Yaroslavl State Medical University provides training for highly qualified medical workers, as well as professional retraining and advanced training of doctors and pharmacists, actively carries out basic and applied research, develops modern information and technological tools and introduces innovative teaching models. The article examines the modern features of the organization of the educational process and the practical training of students, extracurricular work, research and innovation activities, inter university interaction and international cooperation, and also formulates the main prospects for the development of the University.

In modern conditions, doctor as a specialist is faced with a large list of requirements fixed both in legal norms and in the rules of social behavior. The emergence of complex medical equipment and technologies, changes in the moral and legal conditions in the “doctor–patient” relationships led to the modernization of the medical training system. Especially it concerns the segment of practical specialist training. Simulation technologies in this sense should occupy an important place in medical education improving the quality and effectiveness of practice-oriented specialist training, reducing the risk of negative effects of the former education system in medical universities. The first experience of introducing such technologies into the training system at Yaroslavl State Medical University and in the country as a whole, along with obvious positive results, highlighted some problems. Their systematic solution is an important forward-looking task in the framework of the ongoing reform of medical education.

The article addresses the issues of transition of additional professional education to a qualitatively new system – continuous medical education, which requires updating the structure of the organization of the educational process, as well as the content of additional professional programs. In 2016–2019 more than 300 completely new development programs have been worked out, reviewed and approved on the educational portal of the Ministry of Public Health of the Russian Federation. In 2016 Yaroslavl State Medical University has joined the project “Creation of model lean clinics” for promoting the principles of lean-management in healthcare. The main emphasis in the additional professional programs aimed at training medical specialists in the sphere of lean management is made on using simulation technologies. As a result, the University has developed an educational project based on simulation technologies “Process Factory PoLeanClinic” entailing the total immersion of participants in typical process with the aim to reveal, minimize, and forecast the losses and to raise the efficiency of medical organization. Since 2017 the University implements the concept of continuous professional education of teachers. This concept includes three basic elements: 1) continuing education in research and pedagogical activities; 2) continuing medical (pharmaceutical) education; 3) self-education. The elaborated learning modules for teachers’ continuous education are based on the actual needs for acquisition or development of professional competences.

The article discusses one of the episodes of the history of Yaroslavl State Medical University – a change in approaches to the final certification of graduates of medical faculties. The author dwells on how, over the course of seven decades, starting from wartime, the order of conducting state examinations, the list of exam disciplines submitted for final certification, the content of tickets, the form of state graduation exams, the requirements for the graduates of a higher medical school have changed. The content of the article is illustrated with photographic documents that clearly demonstrate the atmosphere of the exams of the past decades.