The Rector of Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University, Vladimir Litvinenko, presented the results of the university’s second year of participation in the pilot project aimed at improving the national higher education system during a meeting of the Academic Council. The project was launched by a presidential decree on May 12, 2023.
The rector emphasized that enhancing the quality of higher education has become a key priority on the agenda of both the government and the president. In October and November of the past year, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin held two strategic sessions dedicated to this issue, one of which focused entirely on the training of engineering personnel and related scientific research. The Russian leadership is paying close attention to the methodological developments and expertise accumulated by the oldest technical university in Russia during this period. These insights will serve as the foundation for developing new approaches to evaluating education quality and shaping national policy in this critical sector.
«The primary objective in improving the higher education system is to ensure that the educational process is fully aligned with the country's development goals and objectives. It is essential to develop a unified methodological approach that integrates school and university education into a continuous system for accumulating knowledge and values. Additionally, students must gain industry-relevant experience within their specialization while also acquiring a broad range of related professional competencies. In other words, we must restore national meanings and methods to the educational process», –said Vladimir Litvinenko.
Over the past year and seven months of participation in the project, Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University has significantly transformed its academic process. A "core" of higher engineering education has been established, comprising unified modules of general education and technical disciplines applicable across all specializations. This includes the module "Fundamentals of Scientific Competencies," which students study during their first four semesters.
The rector pointed out a pressing issue: there are currently 13 different physics curricula used in Saint Petersburg schools and 17 in Moscow. This underscores the urgent need for standardizing educational requirements—both for teachers and for the curriculum itself—so that universities are not forced to re-educate or retrain students upon admission.
After completing the core modules, students advance to specialized courses in their chosen field, alongside elective training in related professional competencies and vocational skills.
The organizational structure of education has also been reformed. Each academic group, during the "core" stage, is now assigned a pedagogical mentor—a professional curator responsible for guiding students. At later stages of education, this role is taken over by a specialization mentor, who coordinates the process of acquiring professional skills and experience. The practical training period for future engineers has been extended to 50 weeks, including eight weeks of internship as an engineer-trainee.
The relationship between the university and industrial partners has also been optimized. Student work at production sites is now supervised by both a production mentor (an employee of a partner company) and a university faculty member. Both mentors are part of the specialized "Department of Practical Skills and Experience." Furthermore, up to 70% of the members on state examination committees now come from industrial enterprises and other universities, ensuring that graduates meet real-world industry standards.
As part of the reform of the system for training highly qualified scientific and academic personnel (doctoral studies), requirements for fundamental scientific competencies have been established, and pedagogical training has been strengthened. Additionally, all doctoral students have been transitioned to a three-year program.
An essential element of the university’s new strategy, according to the rector, is the development of interdisciplinary knowledge among students. At Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University, the tradition of holding keynote lectures (Aktovye Lektsii) by leading experts from various fields has been actively revived. These lectures play a crucial role in broadening the horizons of future engineers and shaping a well-rounded worldview.
A key element of the reform has been the tightening of academic performance control. Following the summer examination session of 2024, approximately 10% of first-year students were expelled due to poor academic performance. As emphasized by the rector, this measure is necessary to create a competitive educational environment. The personal responsibility of the faculty is also being reinforced. To ensure this, the university is developing clear, standardized requirements for staff, aligned with the overall educational objectives.
This work is expected to be completed by 2025. Additionally, the university plans to introduce a new format for academic certification documents, including a diploma, an appendix, and a recommendation profile. Furthermore, graduates will receive an "Engineer-Researcher" diploma in addition to their primary degree.
The university is also set to finalize the development of specialized research platforms for key technological areas, including geology, oil and gas, energy, mining, environmental sciences, mechanical engineering, engineering geology, metallurgy, and mineral processing.
«At each faculty, we are establishing localized technological platforms that will be integrated into both the educational process and scientific research activities. I want to emphasize the importance of concluding commercial contracts for conducting large-scale applied research commissioned by industrial partners. This is far more significant than merely working on scientific grants, which serve only as auxiliary support in achieving practical innovation results», – the rector stressed.
The extension of study duration under the pilot project will require the university to increase the number of dormitory accommodations. In 2024, a new dormitory on Morskaya Embankment was commissioned, providing 600 places across 8,000 square meters.
In total, the university plans to expand residential facilities to 35,000 square meters. This will include new dormitories with studio apartments, supplementing existing ones, departmental housing for faculty members with families, combined with a graduate student dormitory in the Moskovsky District, and a new academic and laboratory complex at Shkipersky Protok.
Additionally, the modernization of educational and research bases and testing sites will continue, including facilities in the Leningrad Region (Kavgolovo, Kuzmolovo, Sablino) and in the Republic of Crimea. These sites will be fully utilized for both teaching and research activities, just like the university’s primary training centers.
But perhaps the most important point made by Vladimir Litvinenko was the lack of clear state objectives in the field of education. Within the school-university-industry framework, Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University proposes two fundamental principles:
The goal of school education is to develop in graduates a foundation of knowledge and values, ensuring that they successfully master all subjects within the framework of state educational standards. This should enable them to develop a coherent system of views, assessments, and conceptual understandings of the world and humanity’s place within it.
The goal of higher engineering education is to shape a comprehensive understanding of a chosen specialty and its connection to scientific progress, inspiring graduates who have completed their academic programs to pursue self-fulfillment through professional work in their field.
He also put forward three concrete proposals：
Develop and adopt a "State Policy in Education"—a cohesive, integrated, and interrelated national ideology covering preschool, school, vocational, and specialized education. This policy should ensure effective governance and accountability for the content and methodology of education.
Based on this policy, establish an "Education Strategy"—a clear action plan that must be followed to achieve the ultimate goal of school, vocational, and specialized education.
Urgently develop and approve a "Transition Plan" for implementing the "Basic Higher Education – Advanced Engineering Education" model.