The purpose of this article is to consider the changes in university teacher’s pedagogical activity in the conditions of a rapid transformation of higher education and propose a theoretical and empirical substantiation of the importance of teacher’s understanding of the value-semantic attitude to pedagogical activity, which is not limited only to mastering digital competencies, but consists in mastering pedagogical knowledge that allows you to critically analyze the productivity of modern educational strategies and methods.

The conducted research was based on the methodology of post-non-classical science, which implies the widespread use of qualitative research methods that reflect the convergence of explanatory and interpretative research approaches, the use of representations, opinions, attitudes, and values of the research participants as full data.

The article describes the results of studying the university teachers’ attitude to changes, the value orientations of the ongoing changes, as well as the main difficulties faced by university teachers in the context of digitalization of education – the design of educational and training programs, modern educational and methodological complex, the organization of productive self-directed work and communication with students in the educational process.

The main directions of overcoming the identified difficulties are given – the construction of flexible curricula within the framework of the Federal State Educational Standard of Higher Education, the development of the digital educational environment of the university and updating the content of the professional development programs for teaching staff. The conclusion is made about the increasing importance of pedagogical knowledge in teacher’s professional activity in the conditions of a modern university.

The publication raises the question of the role of master’s degree in the system of modern higher education. Based on a survey of opinions (three-party survey) of key stakeholder groups (employers; students in higher education programs; managers of master’s degree programs; master’s degree teachers), the authors consider possible options for developing master’s degree as one of the key stages of higher education in Russia. The authors conclude that university development programs in the field of master’s degree education should be designed taking into account the high level of uncertainty in the external environment, which means that they should provide for scenario modeling of the future of the entire scientific and educational ecosystem. The study uses the classification of four types of the future labor market (“technological world”, “world of social responsibility”, “world of entrepreneurship” and “world of corporations”) as the main hypothesis about the options for such scenario planning. The study results are visualized in the form of a roadmap for the strategic development of the Russian master’s degree programs, highlighting key trends for each of the development options. The practical result of the study was the identification of the main “gaps” in the positions of stakeholders on the status of the master’s degree program and effective models of its implementation. The conclusions and results of the publication will be interesting for the purposes of the university strategic management, the formation of a development strategy for the master’s degree, as well as the development of special programs for interaction with employers and students.

The article addresses issues related to the implementation of the competence approach in order to make the teaching process of an educational institution more efficient, analyzes the reasons for diminished efficiency of putting into practice the automated systems used for university management. The authors propose the structure of an automated system, which allows the university to create the required package of teaching documents taking into account the three-level system: administrator, supervisor of educational program, and lecturer. Designing object-oriented model in the area of a special subject requires identification of business-requirements to the system. On the basis of the model of subject area and specified business-requirements, the diagram of applying variants and the schemes of functioning is constructed. The suggested system of the automated execution of teaching documents enables to reduce error rate while carrying out and implementing it due to the integrated system of conceptions and feedback between its elements.

Universities in Russia are experiencing a dynamic transformation of scientific and educational processes, their structures, and management systems. These changes occur at different rates and levels of transformation; they allow for both positive and negative transformation scenarios. A general trend to develop university’s management systems in the country – as well as in the whole world – lies in the managerialization, which poses risks for transforming a university. Following Mintzberg’s methodology for analyzing organizational systems and Taleb’s concept of “black swans”, the paper aimed to analyze degradation scenarios for developing university’s management systems and identify factors and conditions for these scenarios and their consequences for universities.

Higher education today is not going through the best of times: decisions taken in the educational process at various levels (Federal Laws “On Education in the Russian Federation” of 29.12.2012 No 273-FZ and “On Amendments to the Federal Law “On Education in the Russian Federation” on the education of students” of 31.07.2020 No 304-FZ, Federal State Educational Standards of Higher Education, etc.), related to global changes taking place in society and in the world in recent decades, were made without careful didactic study. This cannot help to improve the quality of specialist training. Teachers are forced to work “by trial and error”, producing countless didactic documents. At present, identification of didactic problems in the educational process of higher educational institutions is extremely relevant due to the expansion of the field of didactic research in higher school pedagogy.

The aim of the authors was to analyze some of the most relevant didactic phenomena in the digital reality that have not yet received proper understanding. As a result of the analysis, some important didactic problems of higher education are identified, concerning goal-setting, compliance of teaching with classical didactic principles, organization of distance learning in electronic informational and educational environment, mixed and project-based learning. The article also dwells on psychological problems of Internet content assimilation and “non-contact” interaction between the subjects of the educational process, etc. The most promising areas of didactic research in higher education, including the development of interdisciplinary contacts, are highlighted.

The article considers the service learning program and volunteering as relevant forms for the university’s “third mission” implementation. Volunteering in the educational process is understood as students’ gratuitous activities aimed at solving urgent social problems and designed to increase students’ social and civic activity. The article states that the volunteering has an educational resource for the development of students’ skills, which determines their professional development.

As part of theoretical research, volunteering is presented as a basis and mechanism for implementing the service learning program in the context of university’s third mission. Within the framework of the service learning program, student social activity is viewed just as important as educational and research activities. The results of the research (student focus groups with experience in volunteering) aimed at identifying empirical signs of metacompetencies that are formed under volunteering conditions are presented. The study analyzes metacompetences as cognitive, behavioral and emotional aspects leading to more effective behavior in various situations. They are characterized by student’s self-awareness and self-government. The students’ metacompetencies as an educational result of their participation in volunteer activities are considered on the example of the National Research Tomsk State University.

It is necessary to monitor the social attitudes of foreign students in order to involve foreign applicants in a favorable to Russia discourse, applying the concept of “soft power”. Applicants’ social attitudes have a direct impact on the choice of the country of study and on the effectiveness of social, cultural, pedagogical adaptation of foreign students. The socio-cultural characteristics of foreign students were studied using focus groups, expert polls, and narrative interviews. The classification of foreign students according to cultural profiles has been made. Attitudes of students from different cultural profiles were monitored according to the questionnaires developed by the authors. Based on the scaling techniques of E. Bogardus, C. Osgood, L. Thurstone, L. Guttman, R. Likert, an integral index was calculated for each cultural profile. Methods for monitoring the social attitudes of foreign applicants make it possible to identify the specifics and dynamics of the attitudes of cultural profiles. Positive attitudes towards Russia contribute to the export of Russian educational services and attractiveness of the Russian cultural space and the educational system.

In European countries, primarily in German-speaking countries, first of all, in Germany (Dresden), the concept of engineering pedagogy (EP) has existed for more than 70 years. In Eastern Europe, particularly in the Russian Federation, the tradition of EP has more than 20 years and shows an extensive network of universities actively participating in IGIP (International Society of Engineering Pedagogy). Several universities offer the IGIP curricula and work on various projects  related to majoring in engineering education and pedagogy in Russian Higher Education Institutions. In Spanish-speaking countries the concept of EP is relatively recent. Particularly, since 2014, the Technical University of Dresden (TU Dresden) works in cooperation with Chilean universities to strengthen engineering pedagogy and education in the university context. This goal was concretized through two cooperation projects “Engineering Didactics at Chilean Universities” (PEDING-Project) and “Strengthening engineering training at Chilean universities through practice partner-ships” (STING-Project), both financially supported by DAAD. The main goal of this paper is to present the results of a survey about teaching needs in engineering pedagogy in a Chilean university. In general, the results showed the high level of interest and motivation that a training course on engineering pedagogy specifically oriented for the academic staff of engineering faculties may have. The project was led by the International Center of Engineering Education (CIEI) at the University of Talca (Chile) under the pedagogical support of the TU Dresden (Germany).

The article presents the key points of the development strategy of Orenburg State University with a focus on the criteria of the Strategic Academic Leadership Program “Priority 2030”. Transformations of popular models of university development in the historical logic are considered, actual models in an international and regional scale are highlighted. The article makes the case for transition from the adaptation strategy of the university development to the strategy of a driver of positive changes in the Orenburg Region. The resources of the OSU leadership strategy and tactical solutions for the implementation of the OSU mission – “Development of territory and human capital” in various types and scales of influence are determined.

Orenburg State University is presented as an environment of multilevel multidimensional interaction of various subjects. The dynamics of value interaction between students and teachers is revealed. In the conditions of modern social and digital transformations, the nature of joint activity is changing from formal-reproductive to value-creative. It is pointed out that the dominant instrumental values of students are shifting due to the information and technological features of distance educational technologies. Youth interactions and socio-cultural practices are integrated into the comprehensive program for the development of the OSU socio-cultural environment on the basis of various project activities. The implementation of the program is characterized by receiving grant support for student initiatives. International aspects of university interaction are represented by the development of forms of scientific and educational export to universities of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Analysis and Forecasting Students’ Academic Performance Using a Digital Educational Environment The article discusses technical solutions used at Orenburg State University to organize a digital educational environment. Also, the authors have studied the academic performance of technical and humanities students during the period of face-to-face education and during the lockdown period. The analysis of academic performance shows the absence of significant deviations in one direction or another. The key internal and external factors that influence the students’ academic performance are highlighted. It can be concluded that the use of both internal and external factors gives a high accuracy in predicting the final progress of students.

The article considers the implementation of the principle of continuing education through the system of additional professional education at Orenburg State University. Additional professional education is the main element of the system of lifelong education. The authors analyze the current trends in the development of additional professional education in the Russian Federation and the role of higher education in it, as well as the opportunities and problems of implementing additional professional programs at the University. The analysis of the dynamics and structure of additional professional programs of the Orenburg State University is carried out. The mechanisms of implementing additional professional programs based on a practice-oriented integrated approach aimed at strengthening the practical orientation of programs based on the integration of University’s educational activities and strategic partnership with enterprises and organizations of the region are proposed. The authors analyze the possibilities and prospects of using e-learning and technologies of distance education in the implementation of additional professional programs. The article highlights the mandatory conditions for building an effective system of additional professional education at the University, based on close interaction with the program’s customers, the development of professional competencies of teaching staff engaged in the implementation of additional programs, and the active use of modern educational technologies.

The role and importance of oil and gas in modern society cannot be overestimated. At the turn of the 18th century, with the advent of the first signs of fuel new to the world, the Russian state attached great importance to the creation of all conditions for the development of the oil business. This article highlights the background and development of oil and gas education in Russia, shows the stages of its formation in the post-Soviet space. Statistics is given on the number of students majoring in oil and gas direction on the territory in the Russian Federation. The authors dwell on the role of the Educational and Methodological Association in the formation of oil and gas education. Achievements and problems of oil and gas education functioning in Russia are considered.

The article examines the importance of the discipline of “History and Philosophy of Science” in the context of a new model for training doctoral students. The Russian universities and institutions of higher education should begin its implementation in September 2021. The author analyzes the history of the development and implementation of the course of “History and Philosophy of Science” as an academic discipline, which took place against the background of transformations in doctoral education. The article shows that the significant efforts of the professional philosophical community aimed at conceptualizing the methodological and methodical foundations of the discipline were successful and played an important role in the process of training doctoral students. The professional community not only gave an adequate response to the challenge of the educational reform, but also used it as a chance for renewal, realization of its own scientific and pedagogical potential. The transition to a new model of doctoral education, taking into account the modern realities of the knowledge society, should take into account the need to form critical thinking in postgraduate students as the most important competence. The change of focus from educational training to research component should not lead to utilitarian approach implementation aimed at purely quantitative indicators. The high quality of training future researchers, and focus on the development of human capital meet the challenges posed by the contemporary knowledge society.