A new structural unit, the Institute of Basic Engineering Education, has been established at the St. Petersburg Mining University of Empress Catherine II. Its task will be to work on improving the quality of knowledge and skills of the students who entered the first year this year. During three semesters they will study according to absolutely the same programs, regardless of their direction of training. That is, they will master general education and general technical disciplines, which are necessary to form the fundamental base underlying any professional competencies.
As you know, the first technical university in Russia was among the participants of the pilot project aimed at improving the process of personnel training for the real sector of the national economy. One of the most important steps in this direction was the creation of the so-called core of higher technical education, the mastering of which will take the first year and a half of study and will be a kind of a pass for students to study subjects in their specialty.
As explained by Vladimir Litvinenko, Rector of the Mining University, the level of applicants today varies greatly, since the USE scores, on the basis of which they enter higher education, are not an objective criterion. These scores are rather a consequence of long and laborious "coaching" than an indicator of the real abilities or intelligence of young people. That is why "today it is especially important to create a competitive environment of trust with equal conditions for all", which will allow to identify leaders and pull up the laggards, in the case, of course, if they are motivated to diligent and painstaking study.
"School today sets a teenager up to believe that his main goal is to pass a test, not to acquire knowledge. The consequence is that students come to university not only worse prepared than their peers of thirty years ago, but also unable to think on a large scale. They are not ready to take risks and make independent decisions. This, of course, impoverishes them and makes them less adaptable to the realities of life. Another blow to the quality of secondary education was undoubtedly the switch to online mode during the coronavirus pandemic. The level of preparation of high school students has become even lower due to this. That is why today it is especially important to start training future specialists by mastering a unified program for all - the core of higher education," explained Vladimir Litvinenko.
Alexey Makhovikov, Director of the Institute of Basic Engineering Education, said that during the first three semesters, students of the Mining University will study such disciplines as the basics of Russian statehood, Russian language and culture of speech, higher mathematics, physics, introduction to IT, descriptive geometry, mathematical and computer modeling, industry economics... In short, all those subjects that are necessary for every engineer, regardless of his or her specialization and specific place of work.
"In the late 90's and early 90's I worked in a senior engineering position in a Canadian company, and it was surprisingly easy for me to get a job there. When asked why I got the job and not one of the locals, the employer said that it was primarily due to the peculiarities of Soviet education. He specified that in the West, students master only those subjects that are related to their field of study, while in Russia they receive a fundamental knowledge base, which allows graduates to successfully adapt not only to their specialized enterprises, but also to related industries. Today, when the importance of certain professions in the planning horizon of 5-6 years can both increase and noticeably decline, it is especially valuable," - emphasized the importance of the innovation Alexei Makhovikov.
He is sure that the quality of training of modern entrants has indeed noticeably decreased. Many freshmen cannot answer the questions that their predecessors "cracked like nuts". For example, in what limits the argument of sine can vary or how to calculate the decimal logarithm, knowing how to calculate the natural one. To fill all these gaps is another, no less important function of the core of higher education, the result of the study of which will be the ranking of students.
"During the whole year and a half, based on their academic performance, regularity of attendance, participation in research activities, social work and so on, the guys will gain "credits". As a result, leaders and laggards will be identified in all areas. As for the latter, twenty percent of the total number of each stream may have to continue their studies in less prestigious educational programs. Their places will be taken by those who initially wanted to enter more prestigious specialties, but did not get the necessary USE scores. Such a system will create a real competitive environment, motivate young people to obtain the knowledge and skills necessary for their future career, improve the quality of training of young engineers, who are in demand on the labor market", - said Alexey Makhovikov.
Another task of the new structure will be educational work, as well as assistance in the most painless adaptation of first-year students, most of whom came to St. Petersburg from other regions, to their new environment. This will be handled by 84 supervisors appointed from among the Institute's teachers. They will be tasked with establishing contacts with specific groups and assisting young men and women in solving various, including everyday problems.
We would like to remind you that the peculiarity of the current academic year at the Mining University is the fact that for the first time in 20 years, the number of budgetary places in the first year of the specialization course was higher than in the bachelor's course. In the future, it is planned to completely abandon the two-level model of education imposed on us by the West and focus exclusively on training engineers for a period of 5.5 years.
Moreover, already this fall those young people who entered the oldest technical university in Russia for four-year programs of study will be offered to write appropriate applications and transfer to a specialty. As Alexey Makhovikov assured, the majority of students plan to do exactly that, as they understand perfectly well: only in this case they will get enough time for industrial practice and master all the competences necessary for building their future career. This means that they will be much more in demand on the labor market than holders of a bachelor's degree, which many employers have long perceived as a piece of paper devoid of any significant internal content.
